Accidentally In Love
by Haru Eclipse
Summary: Hanako is Ino's twin sister, like all twins they have a lot in common. But one of their major differences is their feelings for Sasuke Uchiha. Hanako has vowed to always protect Ino, and that includes her heart. When Hanako is put on team 7, she promises her sister to protect him no matter what. But what happens when she falls for him in the process?
1. Prologue

Prologue

Cold rain fell from the black sky hard and fast. The wind blew fiercely making the trees thrash around violently. Lightning flashed and lighted the skies and the ground beneath us. Thunder boomed and echoed making the forest shake. It seemed like a nightmare, a never ending horror.

"Hitoshi!" I shouted above the howling winds. "We need to split up!"

"Are you crazy?" He shouted back, his hazel eyes darting from the path ahead to me.

"I'm serious. Let me handle them!" I insisted as we leaped to the next tree.

"No, I will not allow it!" He objected. "I won't let you get killed!"

"Are you stupid?" I demanded, my anger mixing with my adrenaline. "The mission means more than my life!"

"I said no!" He repeated and the scars on his cheek seemed to pop. "I out rank you and I say no!"

Lightning flashed and struck a tree behind us, as the flames began to spread the tree crashed to the ground. Thunder soon followed and its boom left a loud ringing in my ears. By now our clothes were soaked and goose bumps formed on our skin. But the rain never stopped, instead it increased and it bombarded us as we jumped from tree to tree.

"I don't give a damn about your rank!" I yelled. "The mission cannot fail!"

"Then let me take care of them," Hitoshi offered.

"It'd be better if I did," I started to explain. "Because you know where we're going, and they know who you are. You're faster than I am so you can get there quicker!"

"But Hana-" He tried to say but I cut him off.

"GO! Defend the scroll!" I said as I tossed him the scroll. His eyes were sad and his face held uncertainty. I could feel our enemies approaching us and their blood thirst grew with each passing moment. I gave him a small reassuring smile I said, "I'll be fine,"

"Fine, but you better not die on me, ok?" He said.

"I won't! Now run!" I yelled and with a nod he was gone. For a few moments I stood there on my branch with my eyes closed, waiting. Their evil presence was coming closer as I listened to the noises around me. Slowly I took out an explosive kunai.

_NOW! _I snapped opened my eyes and I threw it at the tree in front of me. When the sharp metal weapon hit the tree lightning struck it, and the tree exploded. Covering my face from the flying pieces of bark and ash I landed on the slick ground.

"Not bad," a sinister female voice complimented me. "What do you think, Tetsuya?"

"We'll have to see how good she is," a male voice, I assume Tetsuya, said. I got into a defensive position as the two walk out from the flames, unburned, untouched. They wore simply clothing, yet nothing about them was simple. The man was pale, as if he was dead and wore a black cloth around his eyes, while the woman looked and felt like she was the bringer of death. "Now you'll be coming with us,"

"Or we kill you!" the girl said in a cheery yet bone chilling voice. She grinned as she looked at me with her depthless black eyes. "I think we shouldn't waste our time and just kill you instead!"

"No the master would like her _alive_, Chiyoko," Tetsuya deadpanned, his arms hanging lifelessly.

Chiyoko frowned and pouted, "Aw fine! But you ruin all my fun Tetsuya!"

"Now you're coming with us!" they said in unison.

"No way in hell!" I yelled before I pulled out my fans and charged them.

**Almost a year ago I would have never thought that I would be in this position. I would have never guessed that I would change this much in less than a year. When I first became a ninja I never knew how much my actions could affect the things around me. I never knew how much **_he_** would affect me.**

**The day of graduation I had a nightmare. I don't remember much of the nightmare but I remember that it had something to do with Ino and Uchiha, and it scared me senseless…**

I jolted up in my bed with cold sweat running down my face. My lungs ached and my breathing was shallow and ragged. With wide eyes I placed my hand on my chest and felt my heart thump wildly against my ribs. For a few moments I sat there in the darkness and waited for my body to calm down.

_ What the hell was that? _I thought as scenes from the dream flashed in my mind. I saw lightning, fire, my sister's tears, and nothing. Then I looked at my clock and heaved a great sigh.

_ Great! Time to get up and go to the academy!_ I thought as I wiped the sweat off my forehead. _What a great way to start off the day! Let's just get this over with!_

With another sigh I got up from my warm bed and stretched my muscles. After I stretched I headed to the curtains and opened them, letting the beautiful morning light wash over my room and erase my worries. With a smile I walked to my dresser and got out a pair of clothes. As I peered out of my door I saw that Ino was not yet awake and I took the chance to shower first.

For a while I stood there with my eyes closed, and let the nice hot water rinse over my cold skin. Noticing that my fingers were starting wrinkle I let out a lazy sigh and got out of the shower. Quickly I dried myself off and got dressed. Then I walked across the hall to Ino's room.

When I opened the door I found her sleeping peacefully in her bed with a little drool on the corner of her lip. Some part of me wanted to let her sleep, but I had to do what I had to do. So I walked quietly to her bed and shook her shoulder lightly.

"Hey Ino, rise and shine!" I said but she just groaned and rolled over making me grumble in annoyance. Then I whispered in her ear, "Ino if you don't hurry Sakura will get there before you and then _**she'll **_get to have Sasuke all to herself,"

"AH! Sasuke-kun!" Ino screamed as she shot out of bed. Her hair was messy from her night's sleep, and her pajamas were a little ruffled. I laughed as I watched my sister scurry around her room like a mad man (or woman in her case) and headed toward the door.

"Hey Ino, I'll go see what's for breakfast!" I told her as I left her room. When I walked into the kitchen I was greeted by complete silence. I looked around the small room and found a note that mom had left us.

_ Great, so mom had to leave early to open the shop and dad is off doing his ninja stuff. _I thought after I read the note. _So I guess we're having cereal this morning!_

I grabbed two bowls from the cabinet, poured the cereal into my bowl and then the milk. Then I grabbed a spoon and sat at the table, enjoying what little peace and quiet that I would get today. After a little while Ino came into the kitchen and fixed herself a bowl while I put mine in the sink. I walked back to my room and looked at my reflection in the mirror.

Ino and I looked so much alike; the same blue eyes, the same blond hair except mine was cut short, and even the same smile! We're confident, outgoing, stubborn, and we'll say what we want when we need to. But while Ino is loud and a little cocky I'm ill tempered and mostly quiet. And another thing that is different between us is that she is madly in love with Sasuke Uchiha (along with almost every other girl our age) while I think he's a jerk and hate his guts! So while she is trying to get close to Uchiha I'm out sharpening my ninja skills.

But the one thing that I hate about being twins is that everyone tries to put us together. It use to be that people would get us mixed up a lot, well until Ino found out that Uchiha liked girls with long hair and she grew her hair out while I kept mine the same. And yet after that for a while people still got us confused! We're two totally different people, but some people still don't understand that. I mean I love my sister to death, but there are times when want to kill her because of our differences (mom says it's a sibling thing, sometimes I seriously doubt that).

_ Ugh! Why should I worry about this?_ I sighed and shook my head. Then I took my brush and ran it through my hair. _I really shouldn't worry since we'll be graduating soon and they'll probably put us on separate teams!_

_ "_Hana-chan hurry up or we'll be late!" Ino yelled making me laugh at the irony of what she said. I quickly put on my black ninja sandals and raced out the door. I met Ino outside of the house and we head to the academy together with grins on faces and a bounce in our steps.

"We will now start the final exam." Iruka-sensei explained "When your name is called proceed to the testing room. The final test will be on the clone jutsu,"

_ YES! This is going to be so easy! _I smiled and giggled to myself. My fears washed away as my excitement rose along with my confidence. As we waited for our names to be called we chatted with our classmates to pass the time. Finally after a few hours of watching my classmates come out of the testing room with grins on their faces and new ninja headbands in the hands, my name was called.

"Hanako Yamanaka," Iruka-sensei called. I smirked and got up from my seat, I could just feel my excitement coming out of me in waves. _This is it!_

"Go luck Hana-chan!" Ino whispered next to me.

"Thanks," I whispered back. I walked into the testing room and awaited instructions from my senseis.

"Okay Hanako, you must make at least three stable clones," Iruka told me and I grinned. I took a deep breath, did the correct hand sign, and concentrated hard.

"Clone jutsu!" I yelled. When the smoke cleared I found five perfect copies of myself.

"Congratulations Hanako! You are now a Genin!" Iruka-sensei said as he hand me a leaf headband and Mizuki-sensei smiled. "Good job Hanako,"

_ Damn straight- oh it's shiny! _I tied the headband around my waist and headed out the door. As I went out the door Iruka called out "Ino Yamanaka,"

"Good luck little sis!" I gave her a thumps up as Ino passed me. Ino smiled and went into the room. Then I waited patiently for her to finish and when she came out she wore her headband around her waist like me. When Ino and I came out of the academy we were greeted by our smiling father. He hugged us both and told us of proud he was.

"Come on girls let's go home for a celebration dinner!" our father said. As we began to leave I noticed Naruto sitting on the swing, all by himself, without a headband and a sad look on his face.

_Poor Naruto, _I thought, my face saddening as I watched him. His usually bright blue eyes were now somber. His goofy grin was gone and was replaced with a frown. Even his spunky atmosphere had evaporated.

"Hanako, come on!" Ino called out as her and dad stood outside the academy's gate, waiting for me.

"Uh-" I looked back at the swing only to find it empty. "I'm coming!"

When I got home, my family and I started eating. We laughed and chatted for hours, and then Ino and I put our dishes away and said goodnight as we went to our rooms. I quickly changed into a black tank top and gray shorts. For a while I just laid in my bed looking up at the ceiling and thought of what happened today. Then I slowly slipped into a dark horror filled sleep.


	2. Chapter 1 Squad 7

Chapter 1 Squad 7

**In the beginning I resented and dreaded the fact that we were on the same team. I knew we wouldn't get along and I knew that it would affect me, and everything around us. But there was a small part of me, hidden and locked away, that was somewhat relieved by what Fate had done. Though I would not know this feeling until later, much later…**

Again I was awoken by nightmares that made no sense. My face was wet with sweat and my limps shook slightly. My eyes were wide and my senses alert; my breathing coming in large puffs of air. And the darkness felt suffocating as it slowly wrapped itself around me. With shaky hands I pulled the chain of the lamp that sat next to my bed, and the darkness retreated to the corners of my room.

When I was finally able to get a hold of myself, I sat in the glow of the light and looked at my clock. _Dawn will_ _be here in a few hours, and then shortly after that I will have to go to the academy. _

_Well I don't think I'll be able to fall back to sleep now, and I really don't want too. So I might as well get up. _With a deep and heavy sigh my feet touched the cold floor. Sluggishly I made my way to the dresser and pulled out some clothes. Taking my sweet time I got dressed, gathered some weapons, and pulled on my sandals. Quietly I sneaked through the halls, not wanting to wake my family, and went out the door. _Since I'm not going back to sleep I might as well train!_

The walk through the sleeping village was peaceful and cool. The moon was just a sliver of light and the stars were scattered across the velvet sky. The fireflies were still out and they danced together in the slight breeze. As always the village was just beautiful, breath taking.

Finally I arrived at my favorite spot, on the edge of the training fields. It was a small clearing that was surrounded by large trees and a creek ran though the farther side of the area. The grass was thick and shaggy and it tickled my toes. I smiled at the familiar sight and took in a deep breath.

"Now let's begin!" I said as new energy traveled through my body. I walked into the clearing and headed toward a particular tree. The tree looked old and some of it large roots stuck out of the ground. Hanging from one of its thick limps was a beaten up training dummy.

"Hello my old friend," I said to the dummy as I tightened my fingerless gloves. "It's time for our daily training."

With that I began to punch and kick the dummy. Occasionally it would swing around on its branch and try to hit me, but every time it was too slow and I counter attacked. After a while, and after the dummy lost much of its stuffing, I stopped and began to practice my kunai throw.

From a few yards away I threw the sharp knives at the dummy, trying to hit the small targets that covered his fabric. With quick flicks of my wrists I sent the kunai soaring through the air and toward the dummy. When I had thrown all of them I walked toward the dummy to retrieve them and repeated the process over and over again.

A few hours pasted and the sun was beginning to rise. I was finally satisfied with my throwing so I decided to take a break to watch. The grass was a little damp as I sat on it and its shaggy, uneven, blades tickled my wrists and my toes. For a few minutes I watched as the moon disappeared in the light of the sun and the starry night sky was replaced with different shades of pastels and dimmed hues. The crickets' and the frogs' lullaby faded as the early birds began to sing their cherry morning melody. Everything was absolutely breath taking, until something rustled the bushes behind me and I felt a pair of eyes staring at my back.

Without hesitation my instincts took over and I threw one of the knives at the bush. The bush grunted and sent my kunai back at me. Catching it with ease I demanded, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

"What are doing here you idiot?" a shadowy figure asked harshly, stepping out of its hiding spot. "This isn't a place to stop and watch the sun rise."

"Sasuke Uchiha," I hissed, my words dripping with acid. "If you're here to train, ya better leave `cause I was here first!"

"It doesn't look like you're training," He stated as he walked out of the shadows, his hands nested in his pockets.

"I was taking a break!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms in the air. _He may not say much, but his words just crawl under my skin and the vibes he gives off just piss me off! What does Ino see in this jerk?_

"Just step aside." His voice commanded as it was reinforced with a deadly glare. At that moment, something inside of me snapped and my mind went blank as I attacked him. Taking him by surprise I was able to pin him to the ground, but my victory was short lived. With a smirk he pushed me off of him and went to attack. His face was inches from my face, but I blocked his punch and swung my leg. He jumped back, dodging my kick and got into a fancy fighting stance.

His onyx eyes seemed to spark with amusement as I charged at him. He defended most of my moves with ease and was able to get me on the ground. Standing above me he gave me a triumphant smirk and said, "I win,"

An evil grin crept across my face as my anger began to show, "Not yet!"

When reasoning overcame instinct I was able to free myself and get into a fighting position. With one arm in front of me I beckoned him with my fingers. So we began to fight again, this time the fight was longer and much more intense. His moves were brutal and calculated, relying more on power than speed; while mine were elegant and swift, using my speed as my weapon. Though most of the time we blocked or dodged the other's attacks damage was still made, but not a lot.

My breath came out in puffs of air as a fresh sheet of sweat covered my skin like dew. A wave of tiredness came over me as my muscles ached and complained. The fight was slowing down and our carelessness increased. His foot smashed into my side as I tried to dodge his punch and my foot collided with his chest as he dodged my first kick.

_I need to end this somehow! _I thought desperately when we both jumped back creating a large distance between us. Across from me Uchiha breathed heavily as his arms sagged, but his eyes never left mine. As if linked together by some invisible cord we charged at each other at the same time and determination poured through our veins. This time when we fought we gained back speed and there were fewer mistakes.

The sun was now higher in the sky and the different colors turned blue. More birds flew about and the creatures of the day began to wake. When I thought that my body would collapse from exhaustion I saw an opening to attack. Uchiha sent his leg toward my upper body but I grabbed it and shoved it and sent my fist at his face, but instead of giving him a nice black eye I ended up flicking his nose.

He stumbled back in shock with his hand on his nose. My anger dissipated at the sight of his face and a cracked a grin. "Don't want to scratch up your face too badly," I mocked before adding, "Or your fan club will kill me!"

He glared at me, unmoving, as I went to get my stuff and before I walked away I turned to him and said, "Don't worry we can continue our fight later,"

"Hn," was his only response and as I walked away I could feel his eyes burning craters in my back.

When I got home dad had already left and Ino was still sound asleep. Quickly I got into the shower and rinsed the sweat and dirt off of me and changed into a pair of clean clothes. Then I walked up to her door, with my hair dripping wet, and knocked softly on the door. Nothing. So very gently I opened her door and founded her in her bed buried under her covers.

_Oh this is going to be good! _I thought as I grinned at the mischievous thought. I silently crept in to her room and quickly walked up to her bed. I bent down next to her ear and whispered in the best Sakura voice that I could muster, "Oh Sasuke-kun, you're so amazing! Ino isn't here and that means I can sit next to you and smoother you with my love!"

"Aiiiieee! Stay away from my Sasuke, Billboard-brow! Sasuke-kun I'll save you!" Ino screamed as she jumped out of her bed, fortunately I was able to get away – without getting hurt.

"Hurry up Ino! We don't want to get there late; God knows what Pinky would do to your precious Sasuke!" I snickered as she pushed me out of her room. After she slammed the door behind me I couldn't help but laugh. When the laughter stopped I headed toward the kitchen were my mother was washing some dishes

"Hey mom!" I greeted her as I pecked her cheek.

"Good morning Hana-chan! Did you sleep well?" she said in her sing song voice, flashing me one of her beautiful smiles. "I saw that you left early."

"Eh, I slept alright. And sorry about that, I didn't mean to worry you," I said while I made myself a bowl of cereal. "Where is dad?"

"Oh that's quite alright! And your father is off on one of his missions and won't be back in a couple days," she answered going back to cleaning the dishes. "Oh good morning Ino-chan!"

"Morning mom!" Ino chirped as she entered the kitchen. When my bowl was empty I handed it to mom and walked toward the door.

"Hanako, where are you going?" Ino asked as I slipped my sandals on.

"I want to go on ahead and take my time," The door opened and I was greeted by a gentle breeze.

"Ok honey! Oh and can you stop by the grocery store on your way home?"

"Sure. Bye mom, bye Ino!" I rushed out the door. As I walked to the academy I let my mind wonder, replaying the fight, and thinking of trivial things. The village was now a buzz with people starting their daily routines. Kids ran though the streets playing games and laughing together. The sun was way over the horizon now and the sky was vacant of clouds. And the birds soared though the air while butterflies hovered over the flowers.

Finally I arrived at the gate of the academy. For a moment I soaked in a little more sun and inhaled a large breath before entering the stuffy building. The classroom was almost empty, but one other person was there, and he sent a fiery glare at me; which I returned in a heartbeat. Taking a seat in the back I placed my feet on the desk and leaned back, and with my eyes closed I waited as the room began to fill with more people.

Soon the room was filled with chatter as people talked with one another and took their seats. I turned my eyes to the door when loud shouts erupted in the halls and sped toward the class. At once my sister and her arch nemesis barged though the door, arguing about who came into the room first, when really they both did.

_ It's a shame; they use to be such good friends, but_ _since they both like that jerk it split them apart! Now all they do is bicker and fight about the silliest things! _I sighed as Sakura rushed to the row in front of me, where Naruto and Uchiha sat. _And the one thing I've learned is to never get in their way when they're arguing..._

"Hi Sakura-chan! What's up?" Naruto greeted, standing up and waving at the pink haired kunoichi. _Huh, I guess Naruto finally did pass. I'm happy for him!_

"Move it Naruto!" she barked, pushing Naruto out of the way, before saying sweetly. "Uh, good morning Sasuke-kun. Mind if I sit next to you?"

"Back off forehead! I'm sitting next to Sasuke-kun!" Ino disagreed, grabbing Sakura's arm.

_ Uh-oh, this isn't going to turn out well, _I thought as I watched the other girls getting up from their seats. _Here we go again._

"I was here first!"

"I walked into the classroom first, everybody saw it!"

"Dream on!"

"Actually I got here before either of you," a brunet said, piping into the argument.

"So did I, so I'm sitting next to Sasuke!" another one said.

"No I am!"

_ Actually, technically I got here before all of you, but oh well! Who cares? Not me, _I thought as they started arguing about who was going to sit next to Sasuke. Then all of a sudden Naruto crouched in front of Sasuke, glaring at him. I could see the sparks fly between them as they glared at each other.

"Hey Naruto, stop glaring at Sasuke-kun!" Sakura barked. Then a guy from in front accidentally bumped into Naruto, pushing him forward into Sasuke, their lips locking. The room suddenly got real quiet; and the girls were shocked. I placed my hand to my mouth, trying hard not to laugh but failed miserably. Soon I was rolling on the floor laugh so hard tears came to my eyes. Then boys broke apart and started choking, their expressions priceless.

"Naruto, you are so dead," Sakura said.

"Hey, wooh it was an accident," Naruto said, trying to defend himself.

"You're finished!" Sakura made a scary face while cracking her knuckles. Then the fan-girls started to beat Naruto to a pulp. When I finally recovered a wave of pity washed over me as I watched the blond boy get beat up, so I did what most other people wouldn't do.

"Hey! That's enough!" I shouted getting between Naruto and the girls. "It was just an accident!"

"But he-" they tried to argue but my glare cut them down.

"It's was an accident," I deadpanned. Slowly the girls got back into their seats and I turned around to face Naruto. His face was a little scuffed up with a few bruises here and there, and he looked up at me with wide ocean eyes with his mouth slightly ajar. I smiled as I offered him my hand.

"T-thanks H-Hanako," he said after her recovered a bit and took my hand.

"No problem!" I pulled him back on his feet. Then I headed back to my seat next to Ino and noticed that Naruto had sat next to Pinky. Soon after that Iruka-sensei walked into the room and everyone grew quiet and the excitement in the air thickened.

"As of today you are all ninjas. To get here you had to face difficult trials and hardships. But that's nothing, what comes next will be far more difficult. Now you are Genin, first level ninjas. All Genin will be placed into three man squad except for one which will have four. Each squad will be lead by a Jounin, an elite ninja," Iruka explained.

"Well somebody will have to be in Sasuke's group. I wonder who?" Ino whispered to Sakura.

"I don't know," she replied.

_I'll be fine with anyone but Uchiha or Pinky, but I doubt that I'd be on a team with either of them, _I leaned lazily in my seat and smiled at the mental math that I had done. _There are too many people, so the odds are low._

"We want each squad to have an equal balance of strengths and abilities, so that's how it goes. I will now announce the squads," Iruka continued and started to call out the different squad members. With my head on my fists I half listened to the different squads being spoken and waited to hear my name.

"Squad seven, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno," Naruto cheered and Sakura bent her head in displeasure, "Sasuke Uchiha," then Naruto sulked while Sakura cheered. "And-"

At that word I trained my ears on his voice as my stomach began to twist. My heart thudded loudly in my chest as impossible thoughts swirled around in my head. _Oh God, no! Please call someone other than-_

"Hanako Yamanaka," _UGH! Of course this is some new form of torture! I probably pissed someone off and this is Karma's way of getting back at me!_

"How did you get into his group?" Ino demanded as Sakura gave her the victory sign.

"I don't get it. What do you see in a guy like that? He's not so special," Shikamaru asked. _Finally! Someone who agrees with me! _

"You are so beyond clueless Shikamaru! Don't you get it?"

"No, I don't get it, because I'm not a girl!"

"You are so full of yourself! Jealousy is a terrible thing. I'd hate to be on your team," Ino sighed. _I think she just dug her own grave, especially since Karma is having a bad day..._I thought as I watched my sister jinx herself.

"Now squad ten, Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara," Iruka said as I snickered.

"Hah! Didn't you say something about hating to be on my squad?" Shikamaru teased as Ino growled.

"And Choji Akimichi. Those are all the squads," Iruka finished.

"Iruka-sensei, why does a great ninja like me have to be in the same group with a slug like Sasuke?" Naruto demanded pointing his finger at Sasuke.

"Sasuke had the best scores of all the graduating students, Naruto you had the worst scores," Iruka explained as laughter filled the room. "To balance the group we put the best student with the worst student,"

"Just make sure you don't in my way loser," Sasuke said._ God he has such a big ego! What an ass!_ I thought as I glared at the back of his spiky head.

"Hey! What did you say?" Naruto demanded, already getting ready to fight his new teammate.

"What are you, hard of hearing?"

"Knock it off Naruto and sit down!" Sakura ordered. _Great we start to fight in the first few minutes of being in a team. _A heavy sigh escaped my lips. _We're screwed!_

"Ahem!" Iruka cleared his throat, trying to get everybody's attention. "After lunch you'll meet your knew Jounin teacher until then class dismissed,"


	3. Chapter 2 Trails of Being a Twin

Chapter 2 Trails of Being a Twins

**The day Iruka placed us on teams I was slightly disappointed that he didn't place me with Ino, but I had a feeling that he wouldn't, and I'm glad he didn't. Instead I was stuck with her crush and her ex-friend, and they both piss me off. I didn't care for them and I knew the feeling was mutual, at least at first.**

When Iruka-sensei released us for lunch everyone began to meet with their new teammates, but not me. Instead I took my lunch and walked outside to find a quiet, peaceful place to eat my lunch. Just outside the building was a large tree with plenty of places to hide. Without wasting anytime I climbed up the tree and found a thick, sturdy branch to sit on. Very carefully I sat on the wood and let my legs dangle off the edge.

As I ate my lunch I watched the world go by. It was mid-day with the sun high in the sky and a few white fluffy clouds sailing under it. People ran around in the streets finishing miscellaneous errands while children played with each other. It was warm, bright and the atmosphere was over flowing with joy. _It's so beautiful._

But my peace ended when I thought of my new team and it made me frown. I was fine with Naruto for he's done nothing to make me dislike him, sure he was the troublemaker of the class and got us in trouble a lot, but he was just doing that for attention nothing more. Sakura, on the other hand, gets on my nerves with her constant whining and complaining and her failed attempts of getting Sasuke's attention, and it doesn't help that she loathes my sister. Then there's Uchiha, the heart throb of the village, sure we don't speak to each other but the atmosphere he puts up makes you feel inferior to him, and his "I'm-so-cool" attitude makes me sick, along with long list of other reasons why I hate him.

"Hey Hanako!" I heard my sister call from below. Looking down I saw Ino standing under the shade looking up into the tree. Our eyes met and she smiled, motioning me to come down. "Come on let's walk together back to class!"

When I jumped down I noticed that Shikamaru and Choji, my sister's new teammates, were standing behind her. Shikamaru was looking to the side with his famous bored expression on his face while Choji was munching away on his barbeque chips. Smiling I waved, "Hey,"

"Come on lets start walking," Ino insisted as she looped her arm around mine and started walking. "Alright so after school mom wants you to go to the store right?"

"Yeah,"

"So here's the list she forgot to give you," And she handed me the long list and some money.

"What about you aren't you going to help me?" I asked as I stuffed them in my pocket.

"Nope, a new order of potting soil is coming in so mom asked for my help since dad's not here,"

"Ok," I sighed, already imagining the heavy load of groceries in my arms.

"Don't worry Hanako I know you can do it," Ino laughed as we passed through the doorway. "Oh and when we get home we need to talk,"

"Why not know?" I asked.

"Because it's private," she whispered, looking back at the boys behind us.

"It's not like we care," Shikamaru said lazily.

"But it's girly stuff!" Ino spat at him. _Great can't wait..._

A few hours later the classroom was completely empty, except for the rest of my team. All of our classmates had already left with their new senseis, and even Iruka-sensei had left to go home. The air was filled with irritation and impatience. The room was dead silent, not a single thing dared to make a noise. But finally the silence ended.

"He's late!" Naruto said, breaking the long silence while looking out the door.

"Naruto, just sit down!" Sakura commanded.

"I don't want to! How come our teacher is the only one who is late? I'm ready to roll! Believe it!" Naruto said. "The other groups already met their new teachers and took off on some adventure or something, and Iruka-sensei is gone too!"

"We know alright.," she agreed, sighing I placed my head on the table, trying to block out their voices. I could just feel a headache forming in the front of my head. Then there was a loud noise that got the our attention. "What are you doing!"

Naruto laughed as he placed a chalk board eraser in the door. Sakura looked up at Naruto, who stood on a ladder, and shouted "Naruto!"

"That's what he get's for being late!" Naruto jumped down, "Surprise!"

"You're asking for trouble! You know you shouldn't do that!"

"Just leave him alone, pinky. Let him do what he wants," I sneered.

"Our teacher is a Jounin, an elite ninja. Do you really think he'd fall for that?" Sasuke questioned.

"Yeah! Sasuke's right, you're so clueless Naruto!" Sakura agreed. Just then a white haired man walked through the door, and the eraser fell right on his head. The room got silent. Then Naruto started to laugh while I failed at controlling my giggles.

"I got him! He totally fell for it!" Naruto laughed and point at the man.

"I'm sorry sensei! I told him not to do it, but he wouldn't listen. I would never do anything like that!"

"Oh, stop being a suck up pinky!" I criticized, after getting a hold of myself. "You were so hoping he would fall for it!"

"I would not!" she lied, looking shocked . _You know you're a horrible liar Sakura! _I thought as I sent her a glare. The man picked up the eraser and said "Hm, how should I put this? My first impression of this group is, you're a bunch of idiots,"

His comment made my blood boil. He had no right to say that, especially after being late for over an hour! But I sucked in my breath, bit my tongue, and said nothing. Why give him more of a reason to hate us?

Then he led us to the roof of the academy. He leaned on the rail while we sat on the steps. The sun was above us and there was little shade to hide us from the suns rays. "Alright why don't you introduce yourselves, one at a time?" he said calmly.

"Introduce ourselves? Well what are we suppose to say?" Sakura asked.

"Things you like, things you hate, dreams for the future, hobbies, things like that" he answered.

"Why don't you tell us stuff first? I mean before we talk, tell us about you, so we can see how it's suppose to work?" Naruto suggested.

"Me?" Kakashi asked, pointing to himself. "I am Kakashi Hatake, things I like and things I hate, I don't feel like telling you. My dreams for the future? Never really thought about it. As for my hobbies, I have lots of hobbies,"

"That was totally useless! All he told us was his name!" Sakura whispered as Naruto and I nodded our heads.

"O.k. your turn. You on the right, you first." He pointed, suggesting Naruto who was right next to me.

"Believe it! I'm Naruto Uzumaki, I like instant ramen in a cup, and I really like the ramen that Iruka-sensei got me at the Ichiraku Ramen Bar, but I hate the three minutes you have to wait after you pour the water in the ramen. My hobby is eating different kinds of ramen and comparing them and my future dream is, to be the greatest Hokage! Then the whole village will have to stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody important!" When he was done I couldn't help but smile at him.

"O.k. next!" Our sensei ordered.

"I'm Sakura Haruno! What I like uh, I mean the person I like is-"she stopped and looked at Sasuke. "Uh my hobby is, uh-"she giggled, still looking at Sasuke. "My dream for the future is-"she stopped and did a little fan-girly scream. Pinching the bridge of my nose I tried to force the fresh headache, that cropped up during her introduction, away. _Oh Lord, please kill me now!_

"And what do you hate?" Kakashi asked.

"Naruto and Hanako!" she replied. _O.k. change that! I'm gonna kill her before I die!_ I thought angrily as Naruto screamed in dismay.

"How'd I end up on your hate list?" I demanded as I glared at her.

"You're Ino's sister." She stated as she returned the glare. Yes, that made so much sense! She hates my sister so she must hate me too. But that doesn't matter because the feeling is definitely mutual.

"Next!"

"I am Hanako Yamanaka. I like a lot of things, but there's too many to name. I hate people who look down on others just because they're different," I stopped and glared at Sakura. "I also hate stuck up jerks who think that everybody is below them! My hobbies are; helping my mother run the shop, training, and sketching flowers and nature scenes in my sketch book. My dream is to become strong enough to protect the ones I love the most, even at the cost of my own life,"

"O.k. last one," Kakashi-sensei said and Sakura giggled.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of things and I don't practically like anything," he started. Sakura gasped and I snickered silently. "What I have is not a dream because I will make it a reality, I'm going to restore my clan, and destroy a certain someone," After Sasuke finished the rooftop got real quiet, even the crickets and the birds were too afraid to say something. Everyone looked at him with weird looks; expect for Kakashi, he looked unaffected; well as unaffected as a man could look while wearing a mask that covered most of his face...

_ And yet another reason why I question my sister's tastes, especially when it comes to this guy. _I thought as I stared at him, with an eerie feeling hanging over my shoulders.

"Good! You're each unique and you have your own ideas. We'll have our first mission tomorrow," Kakashi said.

"What kind of mission are we going to have?" Naruto asked eagerly.

"It is a task the five of us are going to do together," Kakashi answered.

"What?"

"It's a survival exercise,"

"Huh? Survival exercise?"

"I thought we were supposed to have a really mission, not practice! We have already done this stuff in the academy, that's how we got here," Sakura pointed out, slightly annoyed. _Well, practice makes perfect, and we'll need it! _I thought as I looked at our current experience level.

"This is not like your previous training," Kakashi stated.

"So ah, what kind of training is it then?" Naruto asked and Kakashi laughed.

"Hey hold on! That's a normal question. What's so funny?" Sakura inquired.

"Well if I tell you the answer, you're not going to like it!" he replied, and chuckled. "Out of the twenty-eight graduates who just came here only ten of them will actually be accepted as Genin, the other eighteen will be weeded out and sent back to the academy. In other words this is a make it or break it, pass fail test, and the chance that you'll fail is at least sixty-six percent," I glared at the floor and clenched my fits, _I really don't like those odds!_ "See didn't I tell you that you wouldn't like it?"

"That's crazy! We worked hard to get here, believe it!" Naruto yelled. "What was that graduation test for anyway?"

"Oh that, that was to just select candidates that might become Genin or not," Kakashi explained.

"What?"

"That's how it is," Kakashi said. "I decide whether you pass or fail. Be at the designated training spot at five a.m. and bring your ninja gear,"_ This'll get really interesting tomorrow. I hope Ino will be alright!_ _I can't fail!_

"That's it you're dismissed," he told us and turned around_._ "Oh and tomorrow you better skip breakfast, or you'll puke,"

Kakashi left us on the roof alone. Standing up I dusted myself off and sighed. _I might as well go to the store now and get the stuff mom needs. God, Kakashi-sensei can ruin a perfect afternoon!_

Then I quickly went to the store and got everything on the list. After paying I carried the heavy bags awkwardly all the way to the shop. The sun was now behind me, and it started to paint the sky with the different orange and red hues. When I arrived I burst through the door and placed the heavy bags on the counter. Breathing hard I leaned against the counter and tried to catch my breath.

"Hey Hana-chan! What took you so long?" Ino asked as she walked up to me.

"My sensei was really late," I stated when I finally regained my breath. "And there were a lot of things on that damn list!"

"Well I'll help you with those bags while mom closes up shop, 'kay?"

"Yeah, sure whatever," I mumbled while grabbing a bag and Ino grabbed the other.

"Oof! You're right, this is heavy!"

The way to the house was quiet for a while. Then we had random discussions here and there. I really didn't mind the quiet or the randomness, it always felt good talking to Ino; even though we can irritate the hell out of each other! Finally, after a few minutes of nothing but the crinkling of paper bags, Ino asked: "You don't like Sasuke-kun, do you Hana?"

The question was simple, but it completely caught me off guard. How could she think that I had feelings for Uchiha? I hated him. And even if I did, I'd never let those feelings wedge us apart. I would rather swallow my feelings and give Ino my full support. When I regained myself I answered, "OF COURSE NOT! Why do ask?"

"Just wondering," she mumbled and for a while it was silent, an uncomfortable silence. As the silence grew the sun slowly began to set behind us, but before the silence got any longer Ino added, "Hana, will you do me a favor or two?"

"Sure. What is it?"

"Will you promise to protect Sasuke? Like on missions and from Sakura and stuff like that,"

"Yeah sure, I promise!" I said with a smile to show her I meant it, "But on one condition!"

"What?"

"You'll promise me you won't give up no matter what!"

"Alright!"

"I promise!" We pledged together as we intertwined our pinkies and smiled. Even if she didn't ask that question, I knew I was going to do it anyways! Sure I hate him, but now he's my teammate. And he means so much to her, and I'd hate myself for the rest of eternity if I let him die in the field, especially if I could have prevented it. Oh the trials of being a twin.


	4. Chapter 3 I Hate Bells

_**AN: Hey sorry it's been a while since**_**_ I've updated so thank you for being patient! Hopefully this summer I can either finish it or get close to finishing it! Anyways I hope you enjoy! Read&Review Thanks! :D  
_**

_~Haru Eclipse_****

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**Chapter 3 ****I Hate****Bells**

**This Survival Test was nothing like we ever experienced at the Academy. Its only purpose was to see if we could open our eyes and realize what it meant to be on a team.**

The room was pitch black when my alarm went off, except for the slight glow from the numbers on the cursed blaring thing. Lazily I took my arm from the warmth of the covers and slammed my hand down on the alarm clock, then I reached for the string of the lamp and tugged on it. Squeezing my eyes shut, I protected them from the intense rays of light that killed most of the shadows in the room and sent the rest to the corners. Swinging my legs around to the side of the bed I let my feet touch the cool wood floor, sending a slight shiver up my legs.

After a small sigh I pushed myself from the bed. With my eyes still closed I walked to my dresser, my memory guiding me across the floor. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes I opened them and stared at my messy, sleepy reflection. Taking a quick look at myself in the mirror I decided not to take a shower. So with that I began to get ready for the survival exercise today. When I was done I walked downstairs and into the kitchen, opening the fridge only to stop to remember what Kakashi-sensei said the other day.

_ Oh and tomorrow you better skip breakfast, or you'll puke. _Frowning I closed the door shut and, after writing a quick note to my parents, I walked outside into the night. The village was quiet as other people were still asleep and the stars were beginning to fade as the sun was slowly starting to wake up.

Dragging my feet in the dirt I walked to the training field where we were suppose to meet. A few minutes later I arrived at the meeting place about the same time my teammates did, but our sensei was nowhere to be found. So still groggy from sleep we stood and waited for him in silence. As time passed and the sun rose in the sky I shifted from foot to foot, getting more and more impatient. An hour later Uchiha and I were the only ones left standing while the other two were sitting in the grass.

"Good morning everyone," Kakashi-sensei greeted, showing up out of nowhere.

"Hey you're late!" We shouted, except for Sasuke, pointing an accusing finger at our gray haired sensei.

"Well a black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way," he said. _What a total liar!_ I thought angrily. _How dare he make us wait forever for him to show up and make up such a lame excuse! _"Well let's get started."

Walking over to a stomp he put a small clock on it and said "Alright it's set to noon,"

We looked at him in confusion as he pulled out two bells and explained what was happening, "Your assignment is very simple, all you need to do is to get these bells from me, that's all there is to it. If you can't get a bell before noon then you go without lunch,"

Naruto made small sound of protest, which Kakashi-sensei ignored as he pointed to four stomps, and continued. "And you'll be tied to those posts and be forced to watch me eat my lunch in front of you."

_So that's why he said not to eat, not because we'll puke but to motivate us. _My eye twitched at the realization as our stomachs growled in unison, accompanied by Naruto's groan.

"Wait a minute there's four of us how come there's only two bells?" Sakura pointed out.

"Well that way there will leave at least two of you tied to a post ultimately disqualified for failing to complete the mission." He said with too much cheer in his voice. "Those two will go back to the academy; then again all four of you can flunk out too."

_I am not going to fail! _I thought with great determination as I focused my gaze on the bells.

"You can use any weapon, even shuriken. If you're not prepared to kill me then you won't be able to take the bells."

"Those weapons are to dangerous sensei!" Sakura protested as Naruto laughed.

"Especially since you couldn't dodge that eraser," he agreed.

"Class clowns are usually the weakest links, you can safely ignore them. Lowest scores. Losers." Kakashi said to Naruto then to the rest of us he said. "When I say start you can begin."

But before he could say it Naruto took out a kunai and charged at our sensei. But to our surprise he held the boy's arm firmly behind his head with the kunai pointing to his neck. _Damn he's good!_

"Don't be in such a hurry, I didn't say start yet," He then released Naruto as we backed away from him. "But you came at me with the intention of destroying me so, how can I say this? I'm actually starting to like you guys." Then he paused, as if for dramatic effect. "Get ready...START!"

And with that we jumped away and out of sight, well mostly. Crouching on a branch I watched as Kakashi stood out in the open with Naruto. I was out of ear shoot so I didn't know what they were saying, but I knew what was about to happen. With a yell Naruto took off running toward Kakashi, this time without out a kunai, but stopped when our sensei placed his hand in his pouch.

"What is he getting out of there?" I whispered to myself and tried to see what was in there. My question was answered when he pulled out a small orange book. _Is he serious?_

Then Naruto charged at him punching and kicking, but Kakashi blocked every move with his free hand, his eyes never leaving the book. Naruto throw a kick, making Kakashi duck then he went to punch but Kakashi disappeared. Appearing behind the blond he made a single handsign, the Tiger. _Is he seriously going to hurt Naruto?_

With Kakashi's hands at Naruto's butt he shouted something and poked his butt, making the boy fly through the air screaming while holding his butt. Naruto crashed into the small lake and Kakashi went back to reading his book.

"Are you serious? He just poked him!" I whispered to myself as my eye twitched. Soon Naruto dragged himself out of the water and sat talking with Kakashi-sensei for a little while. Then out of the water a group of Naruto clones sprang up and started running toward the man. Coming from behind one clamped onto his back like a leach while some of the others piled onto his legs, making him immobile, as another came in for the punch.

_Wow! Naruto's actually better than I thought! _But I spoke to soon, because he actually punched one of his clones and not Kakashi. Then there was a big orange blob in the middle as they fought each other, and then there was only one and no Kakashi in sight._ Poor guy sensei made a fool out of him._

After a moment of just standing there Naruto turned to a tree and walked over to it. Bending down it looked like he was going to pick something up, a bell maybe? But before he could pick it up his legs were caught in some rope which dangled him from the tree. Kakashi stepped out of his hiding spot and picked up the bell and started to lecture Naruto. Then out of nowhere fast moving objects, most likely shuriken, came flying toward Kakashi-sensei, hitting their mark.

_That had to have been Uchiha, for Pinky wouldn't have the guts and Naruto is hanging from a tree!_ _What is he thinking? _I thought, but it was only a log that got hit. _He used the substitution jutsu!_

Out of the corner of my eye something moved and raced away from the clearing and further into the trees. Looking around I realized that the clearing was empty, except for Naruto who stilled dangled helplessly from the tree. _Crap I better move before Kakashi-sensei finds me!_


	5. Chapter 4 Teamwork

**_A/N: Sorry it took me so long to get this done, I really hate this part! Anyways next is the Land of Waves (I'm so thrilled...)_ _so it could take me a little longer to get those few chapters done. But after that is the Chunnin Exams and then the fun really begins! So please enjoy! Oh and thank you for those of you have have reviewed my story so far! :D _**

_~Haru Eclipse_****

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**Chapter 4 Teamwork**

**That exercise opened our eyes; just enough to see what sensei wanted us to see. You can't do anything on your own, that's why you're on a team. That's why we need teamwork to survive.**

The sun was high in the sky, indicating that it was close to noon. It had warmed up as the day went on, now it was nice nap weather, warm but not too hot. Everything was quiet, no sounds of birds' songs, no hum of the bees and other insect, the only sound was that of the whispering from the trees as a light breeze swept over the small clearing. It was peaceful, but too peaceful for this kind of training.

_Where is he?_ I thought as I landed on a branch. Looking around all I could see were trees, leaves, and the occasional squirrel. With a great sigh I was about to start running again when something caught my eye. It was the silver hair of Kakashi-sensei, and he was still reading that orange book of his. And swinging at his side were the two bells as they shinned in the sun's bright light.

_Now's my chance! _I thought as I quickly formed a plan in my mind. Slowly I moved around the clearing, getting to were I could only see his back. For a moment I waited, to see if he noticed me. When I decided he didn't, I took my chance. Using my speed I leaped from the bush and ran toward him, kunai drawn. As soon as I leaped he turned towards me and blocked my kunai with his own. Jumping backwards I threw the kunai at him.

"I had a feeling you were hiding here," He said as he continued reading his book. "Looks like I was right."

"Why don't you put up your book," I spat taking a kunai in each hand. "And take me seriously!"

"But if I put up my book I won't find out what happens next."

"Don't underestimate me!" I sneered as I tightened the grip on the kunai, my knuckles turning white. Letting my anger fuel my movements I charged at my sensei full speed. The forest on either side of me seemed to blur as he came into focus. When I was close I dove to his side, my blade inches from the bells tied to his waist. A second later he shoved me away and I skidded across the ground, making dirt clouds.

"I heard you were fast," He straightened up and placed the book in his back pouch. "But I never thought that you would be this fast."

I smirked and twirled the knives. "I told you not to underestimate me!"

"But you won't get that close again." He said holding up his kunai.

"We'll see about that!" I yelled as I charged him again. By now my adrenaline had kicked in and mixed with my anger pushing me even harder. All the unnecessary sensations were ignored, making my sight and hearing more sensitive, as I ran. With a yell I went to slash at him but he dodged my knife and countered. I ducked out of the way as the blade sliced the air just above my chest. I dropped to the ground and tried to kick at his feet but he jumped slamming his foot into my chest, sending me flying backwards.

"I told you." He said as I got back to my feet. When I got up I wiped the speck of blood from the corner of my mouth with my forearm.

"I'm not done yet!" I growled, glaring at the Jounin before me.

"Then come on." With that invitation I threw the kunai at him before I charged him again. He sighed and dodged them completely and came to meet me half way. But before he came close I dug into my pouch and grabbed a handful of kunai. Then I leaped into the air, flipping over him as I launched them. He turned in time to deflect them. When I landed I grabbed my last and lunged at him.

I sailed past his side and went to slash a bell off. But before my blade made contact I was sent back. Flying backwards I hit my back hard against a tree. My head spun and a faint buzz filled my ears. Then as I was about to push myself from the tree but kunai pinned me to it. I struggled but the kunai were imbedded deep into the tree. _Crap!_

"You were close, but close isn't good enough." Kakashi-sensei said as he dangled the bells in front of my face, tauntingly. I growled and tried to grab at them, but he pulled them away. The he began to walk off as he twirled the bells. "The clock will ring soon so I suggest you find away to free yourself!"

"Great." I sighed when he disappeared. For a while I tried to break free but each time I could hear the fabric of my clothes rip. Vainly I tried to move my arms but the kunai pinned them in place pretty well. By now the adrenaline had faded away along with my anger. My lungs ached and my legs burned as the natural pain killer ceased. Giving up I just hung there, hoping someone would come.

Soon after I gave up the bell rang. Hanging in silence I was beginning to lose hope when I heard distant voices not too far away. Straining my ears to hear them I realized that they were the voices of some of my teammates, though I couldn't tell which.

"Hey someone help!" I cried out, hopefully loud enough for them to hear me. The voices came closer and soon two people came out of the bushes. Sighing I saw who they were. Sasuke and Sakura. _Great what luck! _I thought as I asked, "Do you guys mind helping me out?"

"What happened?" Sakura asked as she and Sasuke walked closer.

"I tried to get a bell and got pinned to a tree." I deadpanned, not really wanting to explain what happened. For a moment I thought I saw him smirk but his head turned away from me. Then they started pulling the kunai out. When I was free I sheepishly added, "Thanks."

"We need to get going." Uchiha said and then we were off, running through the trees on our way to the place we met earlier this morning. A short run later and we arrived to find Naruto tied to a post and Kakashi standing in front of him. We sat down on either side of the blond, our lunches lying on the ground in front of us. A few seconds later our stomachs growled all together, Naruto's being the loudest.

"Uh-oh, stomachs growling huh? That's not bad." Sensei said in a slight mocking tone before he added. "Oh by the way about this exercise, I won't send any one of you back to the Academy."

"What? I passed? All I did was faint and fall over." Sakura said as Naruto made some type of excited sound. "Do you get point for that?"

_What? I'm confused; none of us got a bell! _I thought as Sasuke smirked and Sakura began to jump in delight.

Naruto's brain was trying to wrap itself around the situation as he tried to say. "That means-that means all four of us we-"

"Yes all four of you are being dropped from the program permanently!" Kakashi said darkly and everything was quiet as the shock sank in. My mind snapped into focus at the words that came out of his mouth. _What?_

"Drop us from the program? That means we'll never become ninja!" Naruto began to protest. "You said that if we couldn't get the bells that we'd be sent back to the Academy! You can't just change your mind and kick us out! Why would you do that?"

"Because you don't think like ninja, you think like little kids, like brats." Kakashi explained harshly. His words angered Sasuke, making him run at our sensei in rage. But before he could make contact Kakashi pinned him to the ground, sitting on the guy. "You think it's all about you."

Sakura was enraged by what had happened and yelled at our sensei. "Let go of Sasuke, you can't step on him like he's some bug!"

"You don't know what it means to be a ninja; you think it's a game huh?" I bit my lip as Pinky gasped. I turned my head away as he continued. "Why do you think we put you into teams, have you ever considered that question for one moment?"

"I don't know what you mean!" Sakura said.

_But I do. _I thought of my dad's team, how perfectly they could work together, with out telling the other what they were going to do. I felt ashamed that I couldn't see it earlier.

"I mean that you never realized what this exercise was all about, not even close."

"What it's about?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, that determines whether you pass or fail."

"But that's what I wanted to ask you from the beginning." Sakura tried to say.

"Think three people on a squad, why would we do that?"

Naruto cried out in frustration. "Why do we have to figure out why you put three people in a squad? We're not the ones that make the rules!"

"It's so basic teamwork!"

"Just working together, that's what you mean?" Sakura asked.

"That's what I mean but it's too late now. But if all four of you had come at me you would have had a chance to take them, well anyways it's over."

"You set it up with four people but only two bells. If we worked together only two people would get to keep the bells and that would lead to group conflict and the squad would break up!" Sakura pointed out.

"Exactly, I purposely pitted you guys against each other." He explained. "I wanted to see if you could over come that and place your squad ahead of yourselves. A Genin should have a natural feel for teamwork but you it never even crossed your mind."

Then he began to point out what we did wrong. "Sakura, you obsessed about Sasuke who was gone when Naruto was right there in front of you but you wouldn't lift a finger to help. Naruto, you do everything on your own. Everything. Hanako, you tried to distance yourself away from the others, completely forgetting they were there. And you Sasuke, you thought that everyone was so far beneath you that they were worthless.

"Arrogance! Ninja missions are carried out in squads, of course you need individual skills but teamwork is the most essential element. Every shinobi understands this, when individuals place themselves above the squad this could lead to failure and death. For example,"

"Sakura," Kakashi paused his speech and pulled a kunai from his pouch placing it at Sasuke's neck. "Kill Naruto now or Sasuke dies!"

Sakura and I gasped in horror as Naruto freaked out but he continued. "That's what happens on a mission." Then he removed the kunai from his neck.

"Oh boy, that was really scary." Sakura said in relief as Naruto and I exhaled, releasing a held in gasp.

"The enemy takes a hostage and you have an impossible choice and someone ends up dead." He explained as he twirled the kunai around his finger before he placed it back into his pouch. "On every mission your life is on the line."

Then Kakashi-sensei got off of Sasuke and walked to the large black stone memorial with several names engraved on its smooth surface. He explained how ninja who died in battle had their names engraved on this stone as a tribute. He also told us of how some of his closest friends were on this stone. At the mention of that my heart sank and I thought of my sister and my father. _I'd hate to see their names on that stone…_

"Alright, I'm going to give you one more chance," He decided turning his head to face us. "But I'm going to make it much hard on you. You'll have three hours to get a bell. Eat lunch to build up your strength now, but Naruto doesn't get any."

He walked forward and continued. "It's your punishment for breaking the rules and trying to eat by yourself. And if anyone tried to feed him, that person will immediately fail. I make the rules you follow them, got it?"

After that we began to eat our boxed lunches while Naruto sat quietly. I played with my food while the other two eat away. A few minutes passed and Naruto's stomach broke the silence.

"This is no big deal! I can go on with out eating for days, for weeks. Believe it! This is no big deal." Naruto said but his stomach disagreed. "No problem."

"Here," Sasuke said handing Naruto his food.

"What? Sasuke you can't do that! You know what the sensei said." Sakura protested as she looked around.

"Kakashi is gone and we need to get those bells as a team. If Naruto is hungry he'll be weak and ineffective, that hurts the team and jeopardizes the mission."

Sakura looked at her lunch and thought for a while, then she handed her lunch to Naruto, who seemed touched by the sediment. I smiled as Naruto said "Thanks,"

"Don't thank me, just hurry up and eat it." Sakura urged.

"Uh, but isn't that your lunch?" He asked.

"I'm on a diet; I mean I don't eat as much as Sasuke…" She tried to say. "Just take it Naruto!"

"I can't take it. `Cause I can't move my hands so you'll have to feed me!"

"What?"

"Hurry up! He can come back at any minute." Sasuke told them.

"Yeah Sakura, just do it!" I added. With great resistance Sakura took some rice and placed it in Naruto's mouth. When he swallowed it there was a large explosion and wind wiped viciously at us.

"YOU!" Kakashi boomed as he appeared out of the cloud from the explosion. "You broke the rules. I hope you're ready for the punishment!"

He did a few quick handseals and the sky darkened, sending lightening from the clouds. "Any last words?"

"But you said," Naruto stuttered as Sakura trembled.

"Yes?"

"You said that there were four of us! That's what you said and that's why Sakura and," Naruto started.

"We're all on this squad and we're all in it together!" Sasuke finished.

"Yeah we gave him our lunch because we're one!" Sakura added with confidence.

"If one of is weak we're all weak!" I said.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah! Believe it."

"The three of you are one? That's your excuse?" He came closer and peered down on us, trying to scare us but we stood firm. Then with a smile he said. "You pass."

"Huh?" we all asked, expect for Sasuke.

"You pass." He repeated.

"What do you mean we pass?" Sakura asked, not believing what she was heard.

"You're the first quad to succeed. The other squads did exactly what I said and fell into every trap. They couldn't think for themselves," He explained as the clouds dispersed. "A ninja must see threw deception. In the ninja world those who break the rules are scum, that's true but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum."

_Ha-ha! Yes! We did it!_ I grinned as Naruto said with teary eyes, "You know he's kinda cool."

"This exercise is over, everyone passes. Squad 7 starts it's first mission tomorrow!" He gave us a thumps up.

"Yes!" Sakura cheered.

"I did it! I did it! Believe it!" Naruto exclaimed happily. "I'm a ninja. Ninja. Ninja!"

"Let's go home," Kakashi said as he began to walk away and we followed.

"Hey! I knew they'd do this! They forgot to untie me!" He yelled as we walked away.


	6. Chapter 5 Cats and Psychos

**_A/N: Sorry it has taken me a while to get this chapter out. I'm sure there are some of you that are about ready to kill me because the extreme delay! Anyways, I have gotten a weird sense of motivation to push me forward with this story so I'll be updating as soon as I can. Updating may be very irregular, but I promise that I haven't forgotten about you all and the story!_****  
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**Chapter 5**_ Cats and Psychos_

_**When I woke up that morning I was expecting a challenging mission, something to really test our skills as Genin. Instead we spent most of our morning chasing a lost cat. But then we got what we asked for, a harder mission, a nightmare**…_

The day after the Survival Test I was ready for anything, and in most ways I was excited to finally start my Ninja career. I was ready for any type of mission they were going to give us like delivering important messages, finding missing villagers, or maybe scouting a mysterious area. What I wasn't expecting was to find and catch a missing cat.

For most of the morning we chased the runaway feline. The whole time we did really well, we were serious and hardly bickered. It was almost like we were really working as a team.

We followed the cat into the woods, careful not to scare it off, but it was determined not to be caught. It made a mad dash for a group of bushes and hid itself amongst the thick leaves. Hiding about five meters away we got into possession and waited for sensei to give us the order. When we where ready he gave us the signal and we went to grab the cat.

Naruto was the one to capture the brown feline. It wasn't too happy about getting caught and Naruto was the one to pay. Sakura and I watched as he was being used as a scratching post and was getting stomped on by the cat. Then when we confirmed that it was the missing cat Tora, we left to get another mission.

We went back and found the cat's owner, a nicely dressed woman with a little too much makeup on. Naruto was more than happy to give the cat back to her and we watched as she squeezed the poor thing.

'_Now I understand why it ran away'_, I thought as it squealed and struggled. Then the Hokage began to read us a list of 'missions' which seemed more like chores than anything else, and Naruto seemed to agree when he started complaining about getting a real mission. Like everyone else he wanted to be challenged, not running around doing 'little kid stuff' as he put it. And I think the rest of us agreed with him, but he was the only one _brave_ enough to say anything about to the Hokage.

Then Iruka-sensei yelled at him, telling us that we were just beginners, Genin that needed a lot of training and practice. I understood where he was coming from, but I still felt like we were being babied way too much and it was starting to make me mad. But again Naruto was the one to voice all our opinions and he started to argue with our former sensei–that is until Kakashi-sensei punched him on the head, telling the poor kid to shut up. This little squabble led the Hokage into explaining how the missions were ranked and assigned, and saying something about ninja rank and how our ranks determined what missions we would get. _Blah! Blah! Blah!_

_ 'I've heard this a thousand times from my dad,'_ I thought as I ignored the Hokage and instead barely listened to what Naruto was saying about what ramen he had yesterday as he sat on the floor. And the funny thing was I wasn't the only one not paying attention to the unwanted review! Pinky and Uchiha were also listening to what our little blonde friend was babbling about, even our sensei didn't seem like he was paying attention.

It didn't take long for the Hokage to figure out that we were listening. When he stopped Naruto tried to explain that he wasn't just some brat anymore, but a ninja–and he deserved a ninja mission. Even though his speech was compelling, I thought that he ruined it when he turned around, pouting like a child, and faced his back to the Hokage. But to my surprise, and probably everyone else, the Hokage just chuckled. He relented and did as Naruto wanted, and gave us our first C-ranked mission.

"No way!" I whispered as my jaw dropped and my eyes widened slightly. I just stared as Naruto cheered; finally his child-like stubbornness got us something that we wanted. So the Hokage told us that we would be bodyguards, which got Naruto all excited. But to our great dismay we weren't guarding a princess or an important councilor, instead we were guarding a drunkard, who was a bridge builder.

At first glance he didn't look too important. He was an older man with gray hair and dirty work clothes. He was carrying a bottle filled with alcohol, and his tanned weathered face was covered with a soft drunken pink. Not only did he look like a drunk, but he played the part nicely. He seemed rude and uncaring. The first thing he did was insult Naruto, making the boy want to kill him. I frowned at his crude, drunken comment, _'What do we need to guard him from, an angry bar-owner that he owes money to?'_

_**Oh, if only I knew what I was saying and what laid a head of us.**_

Kakashi-sensei gave us time to go home and get our things. He expected us to be away for a few days and told us to pack accordingly. He also told us to hurry, or he'll leave us behind. So I ran home quickly, barely having enough time to say a word to my mother. I packed a small backpack with a few clean shirts and an extra pair of pants. After that I made sure I had enough weapons and other things in my pouches, grabbing a few to pack with my clothes. '_You could never be too careful, always be ready for the worst,'_ My dad would always tell us. So I did just that. When I was satisfied with my packing I went back down stairs, where the shop was, and kissed my mother good-bye.

"Where are you off too?" She asked after she returned the kiss to my cheek.

"My first C-rank mission!" I grinned with excitement, practically hopping in place. My mother stopped arranging some flowers and looked at me strangely. For a moment disbelief crossed her face, but when she realized I was telling the truth concern replaced it and filled her beautiful eyes. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah!" I smiled, ignoring the concern. "Naruto made enough fuss over the missions that we were getting so the Hokage gave us a harder one!"

"Where will you be going? How long will be gone?" She asked, her concern growing further.

"Mom we're just going to the Land of Waves, we'll only be gone for a couple of days." I replied, trying to give reassuring smile. She stared at me hard for a few more seconds before she sighed.

"Just be safe." She said before giving me a hug. I smiled and wrapped my arms around her slender waste, taking in all the flowery smells that were my mother and said. "I'll be fine, I promise!"

Then she released me and kissed my forehead. She waved as I ran off to the front door. I waved back and called out before I left, "Tell dad and Ino that I love them!"

A few minutes later I made it to the village gate, I wasn't the first there but I wasn't the last. The rest of my team and the bridge builder were there, the only one we were waiting on was our sensei. As we waited I shifted from foot to foot, feeling restless. Grumbling Naruto crossed his arms and commented, "So he threatens us if we're late, but then he's late himself!"

"Naruto quit complaining!" Sakura barked as she glared at him.

Frowning, I joined the conversation and tried to defend Naruto. "Hey Pinky, don't get all angry with Naruto just because sensei is late and he's the easiest one to pick on!"

"Yeah!"

"Butt out of it Hanako!" She glared at me, crossing her arms over her flat chest. I shook my head and spat. "You're pathetic!"

Before the situation could get any worse Kakashi-sensei showed up out of nowhere, making everyone (but Sasuke) jump. With everything ready we started our journey and walked out the gate. At first everything was quiet and peaceful. Everyone (well mostly the younger generation) was excited to be out of the village and on the road. Naruto was more excited than anyone, the whole time he jumped from place to place looking around at everything like hyper child in a new place. For the rest of us, well we tried to contain our excitement a little better and walked calmly with the adults.

After a while the silence was broken up by a question that Sakura asked Kakashi. So for a while he tried to explain to us about the nature of ninja villages, and how the Land of Waves didn't have any of their own. As he explained I looked around and tried taking in all that I could see. The sky was clear, the birds were singing, and the sun was bright–a perfect disguise to hide the truth of what was just around the corner.

I sighed softly as a breeze blew by; rustling the trees and bushes on either side of the dirt road we were traveling on. In the distance I could hear the rushing of water adding a few notes of its own to the birds' song. Soon everyone became quiet again and we continued to travel further from the village at a slow pace.

Soon we walked across a small bridge that was built over a small stream. Naruto and I were in the front of the group followed by Sasuke and Sakura, and then Kakashi-sensei and the bridge builder made up the back. When we crossed I looked around and noticed a small puddle on the side of the road. Frowning I tried to remember the last time that it had rained.

'_Huh,'_ I thought to myself as I passed it. _'I'm sure it hasn't rained recently. If it did then mom wouldn't be nagging me and Ino to help water the outside plants yesterday.'_

Then I looked back at our sensei, who also seemed to notice the puddle, but he didn't say anything. Worried, I turned back around and bit my lip. Part of me was telling me to ignore the random puddle and the bad feeling growing in the pit of my stomach. Kakashi-sensei didn't seem worried about it so why should I? But then the other side was telling me to stop being stupid and start looking for danger. Guess which one I listened to?

After that I tried to act as normal as I could. But I didn't have to act long, because after we had gotten a few meters from the puddle all hell seemed to break loose.

No one saw them coming before it was too late. Just as we saw our attackers they sent a chain forward and it wrapped around Kakashi. The chain sported large pointed spikes that dug into his skin. Then they yanked hard on the chain and our sensei was lifted into the air and ripped apart. His bloody remains rained to the ground as Sakura let out a loud terrified shriek.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto shouted, his blue eyes wide with fear. Suddenly the two men appeared behind him, and he froze. _'Why isn't he moving?!'_

"You're next!" They told Naruto, laughing like demented mad-men. My own eyes widened as I realized that he wasn't going to move out of the way. My adrenaline began to run through my veins as my instincts took over. Though I knew he wouldn't move I had to try to get to him, snap him out of his terrified trance. "Naruto! MOVE!"

But he didn't budge. As the attackers raised their clawed hands, ready to stick Naruto down, I charged forward. Sprinting as hard as I could, I reached him before they brought their hands down. At full speed I grabbed a hold of my stunned teammate, my arms tight around his chest, and tackled him to the ground. As their hands swiped at thin air they realized that he wasn't there and turned toward where we landed. Quickly I got up and grabbed a kunai from its holder. Taking a defensive position in front of Naruto, who still sat on the ground stunned, I glared at them, daring them to attack.

They seemed to be more than happy to take the offer. Charging they got their spiked chain ready yet again, planning on doing to us what they did to Kakashi. My grip tightened on my kunai as I prepared myself to defend my teammate. But as they got near something flew through the air and nailed the chain to a tree behind them. Then a kunai knife flew and reinforced the shuriken. Looking up I saw that Sasuke was the one to stop the chain. Frowning, I stayed close to Naruto as Sasuke took care of the attackers.

As I watched him show-off with his fancy fighting maneuvers something dawned on me. Looking over at the old man I saw that he was unprotected and Sakura was the closest to him. I cursed under my breath as something told me that she needed to move.

"Crap!" I hissed, knowing that I couldn't leave Naruto alone. Looking over at Sakura I shouted, "Sakura, the bridge builder!"

She seamed to recover from her fear and started thinking like ninja. Getting out a kunai knife, she got in front of the old man. She stood firmly between the enemy and the bridge builder, her protective stance good and solid. But something told me that that wouldn't be enough. _'What do I do?'_

Suddenly my question was answered when the enemy broke away from their chain. Leaving it behind on the tree, they split up. One raced toward Sakura and the old man, the other went for Naruto and me. I flung my kunai at the crazed looking man, but he simply deflected it with his clawed arm. Getting out two more, I placed one in each hand and went to meet him half-way. Running toward him I could see the sickening excitement in his tiny black eyes–but that was all I saw before I saw nothing but green. Then suddenly he was gone. My heart raced as I searched for him. My eyes went over to where the bridge builder was and I gasped.

There in front of the others was Kakashi-sensei, alive and unharmed. Under one arm he had the man that was charging me; he seemed to be out cold. The other guy was in a choke hold, stopped in mid-attack. I let out a sigh of relief and smiled. _'He's alive!'_

Then my smile faded and my eye twitched as I realized that he was alive the whole time–and we had to fight off the psychos with big metal claws. _'We could have died!'_

"I'm sorry Naruto that I didn't show up sooner," He apologized, his head turned to look at us. "I didn't mean for you to get hurt. I didn't think you'd freeze up like that."

Then he walked over to the others, still with the two enemy ninja under his arms. "Good job Sasuke, Sakura, and you too Hanako."

I walked back over to where Naruto sat and offered him my hand. He took it and I helped him up, but he still seemed off. Giving him a concerned look, I placed my hand on his back and asked, "Are you ok Naruto?"

Not too far away Sasuke turned to us, with his hands in his pockets and a smirk on his face. With mock concern he asked, "You're not hurt are you?"

Naruto flinched and I frowned, not liking where this was going. "Scaredy Cat!"

"Uchiha, that's not funny!" I yelled, giving him a hard glare. Naruto clenched his fists and started to charge him as he shouted, "Sasuke!"

"Naruto!" Kakashi yelled, making the blonde stop in mid charge. "Stand still; these ninja had poison in their claws. We need to take it out of you quickly!"

Naruto gasped and I stared at him, searching for the said wound. Then he looked at his hand and found that there was a small slice on the top. _'But how? I-I though I got to him in time!'_ I thought as I tried to remember, but everything happened so fast. Kakashi kept talking,"We're going to have to reopen the wound. The poison is already in your system, so don't move around, that'll only spread the poison faster," Then he turned to the old fart and added. "By the way Mr. Tazuna we need to talk."

Kakashi took the ninja to a nearby tree and tied them to its massive trunk. Then he explained that he knew about the ambush, mentioning that the puddle we passed was out of place because of the lack of rain. He told us that he let himself be 'killed' so that he could figure out how their target was. At the time he didn't know if it was just ninja killing ninja, or if they were after the old man. When he told us the bridge builder was their target he explained who they were. He told us that they were Kirigakura shinobi and they were skilled in relentless fighting.

"We're Genin, this way advanced for our level of training. We need to go back. And I really think we should treat Naruto's wound and get the poison out," Sakura pleaded, I know that she meant well–but I frowned at her words. Next to me, Naruto looked pretty upset, and I didn't blame him. This was killing him. "Back at our village we can take him to a doctor,"

For a moment Kakashi-sensei thought about what Pinky said. "Naruto's hand could become a problem," then he sighed and added, "I guess we should go back to the village."

Naruto growled and grabbed one of his kunai. Without warning he stabbed his wounded hand. Everyone gasped at his sudden action and Sakura protested. He was silent for a little while, a look of determination on his face as he thought long and hard on something. As he thought drops of blood streamed down his hand and crashed to the dirt under him. Then with confidence in his voice he promised, "Bridge builder, I will complete this mission and protect you with this kunai knife. Don't worry I'll be fine!"

I stared at him with wide eyes and smiled. Shaking my head, I knew that the poison was out and that he went a little over board with the speech. But on the inside, I was clapping for him.

"Uh, Naruto, that was really cool how you took out the poison and all, but if you lose any more blood, you're going to die," Kakashi stated. That made Naruto start to panic and in doing that he got a lecture from Pinky about how reckless and stupid he was. I don't know why, but the scene made me laugh.

_ 'He'll be fine,' _I grinned and Kakashi-sensei started to bandage his hand.

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_**A/N (continued): I hope you guys enjoyed reading this update. This arc will only be a few chapters and then we'll get to the Chunnin Exams, so please bare with me! Review or whatever you like, I always enjoy hearing your opinions (good or bad) and have a nice day! :)**_

_**~Haru Eclipse  
**_


	7. Chapter 6 The Mist

**Chapter 6 **_The Mist_

_**Fear, is a very powerful emotion. It can be the one thing that will get you killed, or keep you alive. It can open your eyes or shut you out from the world around you. It can make you stronger. It can make you weaker. This was the first time that fear was one of our enemies, and it won't be the last time.**_

There aren't many things that I'm afraid of. Most of my fears I consider to be rational, but don't most people? I'm not afraid of spiders or other creepy-crawlies, like most girls (including my sister), but I am afraid of small spaces. It was a fear that I had developed when a simple hide-n-go-seek game went terribly wrong, and I got locked in a small dark closest. It's not a big fear, and usually I can handle it pretty well, but when you're on a small motorboat with six other people and you're surrounded by extremely thick mist–that's a different story!

So here I am, sitting behind Naruto with my hand gripping the side of the boat for dear life. The fog around us was like thick plaster walls without windows (kind of like a closest), you can't see the outside world–just the wall. So for the most part, I stared at the back of Naruto's orange jumpsuit as I felt the splinters from the boat dig into my skin. I didn't mind the little sting or the loud orange of the jumpsuit, just as long as they distracted me from the fog–and what might lie beyond it.

"This fog's so thick, you can't see anything!" Sakura's high pitched voice pointed out.

_'Nah, really Pinky?' _ I wanted to say, but my mouth wouldn't open

"The bridge isn't far now, our destination is just ahead," the boatman told us, "The Land of Waves."

A few moments later a massive unfinished bridge appeared. It looked to be made out of large stone with thick pillars holding it up from the water. And on the top of the bridge, it was covered with all sorts of large equipment and machines. Naruto looked at it with excitement and yelled, "Wow, it's huge!"

"Wha? Quiet! I told you no noise," the boatman snapped at the excited blonde, "Why do you think we're traveling like this, huh? Cutting off the engine and moving through the dense fog. So they don't see us!"

_No, I thought it was because we were throwing everyone a surprise party!_ I thought sarcastically, rolling my eyes as I went back to staring at Naruto's back. Then I mentally smacked myself for my nasty thought. _Is it just me or is this fog making me worse?_

For the rest of the ride Mr. Tazuna explained the reasoning behind building the bridge. He told us that Gato, a major business man, was selling drugs behind closed doors and using ninjas and gangs to do his dirty work. He also told us that Gato wants to take over the trading routes of the nation, meaning he'd be in control of the economy, the government, even their way of living. So Gato fears the bridge, because when it connects to the main land the nation will be free. Now Gato will do anything to kill Mr. Tazuna, the brains behind the bridge, to keep his power.

Then the bridge builder explained why he didn't pay for a higher mission rank. He told us how the Land of Waves was a poor nation–even the nobles have little money. So the people working on the bridge couldn't afford to pay for a B or A ranked mission. And then he played the guilt card on us. He said that if we left him when the boat ride was over that he'd be dead before he got home. He told us of how his grandson would be crying for him and how his daughter would blame the Leaf ninja and live her life in sorrow.

'_Geez, this guy sure lays it on thick!' _My eye twitched as we agreed to keep guarding him. Who cares if this could go dangerously wrong? We don't want to make his grandson cry and his daughter die of heart break and condemn us for letting her father die. So the stupid guilt card wins the game yet again!

The fog had cleared away to reveal a pretty and quaint little town. When we made it to the dock we got off and the boatman turned on the motor and raced away. After we got everything ready we headed toward the bridge builder's home. Soon we left the little town behind and the water was replaced by trees. We were now traveling through a forest yet again, though this time I kept my guard up and my eyes open–and it seemed like I wasn't the only one.

Our journey wasn't as peaceful as when it first started back at the Hidden Leaf Village. Naruto decided that he wasn't going to have another psycho (or maybe just Sasuke) get the better of him again, so he too was on high alert–but he took it to the extreme. As we traveled down the dirt path he kept jumping around, trying to search every shadow and bush. Then at some point he started throwing kunai knives into the bushes, claiming that we were being followed.

_'I swear to God, I think he's going to get us, or some innocent bystander, killed if he doesn't stop!' _I sighed as he got a lecture from Sakura and was yelled at by the old man, who was completely sober at this point. But their words seemed to go right over his head because he threw another knife, and almost hit a white rabbit hiding in a shrub. After seeing the poor frightened creature, he scooped it up and began to apologize to the traumatized rabbit over and over.

_'Huh,' _I thought as I stared at the rabbit, my curiosity getting the better of me. _'I've never seen a white rabbit before. I wonder if it's someone's pet.'_

"Look out!" Kakashi-sensei shouted, and we all ducked as a huge sword flew over our heads. When I looked up I saw that the sword had been embedded into a tree in front of us, and there was a tall pale man standing on its hilt. We all got to our feet, ready to attack.

_'Geez, this guy looks almost as crazy as the other guys we ran into earlier!'_ The new attacker looked young but deathly pale, like he didn't spend much time outside. He wore long stripped pants with leg warmers on his arms and legs. His bare back was turned to us, but he turned his head in our direction. His brown eyes were small and his dark hair spiky, but below his eyes he had bandages wrapped around his face. The way he looked at us made my skin crawl. Something about him was telling me to run.

"Well, well, if it isn't Zabuza Momochi, rogue ninja from the village Hidden in the Mist." Sensei said, his voice serious. I stared at him with wide eyes. _'Wait! Did he say __**rogue ninja**__?'_

Naruto began to run forward but Kakashi stopped him. His eyes were trained on Zabuza as he said, "Get back, you're in the way."

"But why?" the blonde protested, obviously he wasn't sensing the dangerous vibes radiating off the man. Either that or he was just ignoring them.

"He's not like those other ninja; he's in a whole other league." He tried to explain. Then he raised his hand to his headband over his eye. Everyone gasped as the tension in the air grew.

"Kakashi of the Sharingan eye, did I get that right?" Zabuza asked, his voice making the hair on the back of my neck rise. "It's too bad huh? But you're going to have to hand over the geezer!"

'_Sharingan, it sounds familiar but I can't place it.'_ My mind was too concentrated on what was happening to remember much else. Silence once again accompanied the ever growing tension, and a light breeze started to blow, throwing leaves in the air.

"Everyone, form the Manji formation!" Kakashi-sensei ordered us. "Protect the bridge builder and stay out of this fight! I taught you teamwork, now it's time to use it."

Then he lifted his headband revealing a scared red eye.

"Well looks like I get to see the Sharingan in action," Zabuza said. "This is an honor."

"Everyone keeps on saying 'sharingan' 'sharingan'! But what is it?" Naruto demanded.

Then Sasuke began to explain some of the Sharingan's background. He told us that it's a rare power that resided in the pupils, also called doujutsu. It can instantly see and comprehend any taijutsu, genjutsu, or ninjutsu and reflect the attack back to the attacker. Then Zabuza added to it, saying that it can analyze any opponents' technique and copy it exactly.

_'I think I remember my father explaining something like that to me and Ino once.'_ I thought as the explanation cleared some of the webs in my brain. Then Zabuza went on saying that before he was exiled one of the many names in his Bingo book was Kakashi, the copy cat ninja, who copied over a 1000 techniques. After that I held back a whistle, _'Damn, now I know why dad was surprised to hear who my squad leader was!'_

Out of nowhere mist came up and surrounded us as Zabuza said, "Enough talking! I need to kill that geezer now!"

With that said we quickly got into our positions. Sasuke guarded the front, Sakura and Naruto on either side of the old man, and me in the back. We stood there with our kunai in hand, ready for anything. From my side, all I could see was mist and the outline of the forest behind us. It made me nervous that our enemy was behind me, but I had to trust my teammates, so I tried to swallow my doubts and stood ready.

"So, I'll have to eliminate you first, ah Kakashi? So be it!" Zabuza said from behind.

"Look over there!" Naruto said, and well I looked. From where I stood I couldn't see much, but with my head turned to the side I what Naruto was pointing at, well sort of.

"He's standing on the water!" Pinky shouted. Looking further I could see him on the water holding one arm in the air and the other to his face. As he stood on the water it began to spray, and the spray swirled around him, eventually turning into a mist. Then he just disappeared.

"He vanished!" Naruto exclaimed. Frightened, Sakura asked who he was. Kakashi told us that he was the ex-leader of the Hidden Mist assassination unit, and that he was a master of the silent killed technique. He then explained that the technique could happen in an instant, without warning, and the victim was dead before they knew what happened. He said that it was fast–fast enough that the Sharingan couldn't fully neutralize it. When he was done, I think that he put even more fear into us then he intended.

"Don't lower your guard." He warned us. I let out a shuddered breath, and then another. Already the silence and the mist were getting to me, the familiar fear coming back. "Well, if we fail we only lose our lives!"

"How can you say that?" Sakura barked, obviously she wasn't humored by his failed attempt at a joke–or was he serious? The mist got thicker and thicker. It felt like we were trapped, surrounded by dense window-less walls. I began to sweat as the tension rose and took my fear with it. Suddenly, our sensei disappeared too, swallowed by the mist.

"Eight points," Zabuza's voice called out around us. "The Larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney, and heart. Now, which vital organ do you want to get struck at?"

_'Oh God!'_ My mind began to race with my heart beat. I bit my lip to try to regain control–but it wasn't working. _'Why did Naruto have to get us into this?'_

Then I felt a lot of chakra being built being built up and then released. The release created a large force of wind that cleared away the mist. But that didn't help me much–I could still feel the hate. Sense the strong blood thirst that hung in the air–and feel the need to kill. My breathing became shallow as my hands shook slightly. My grip on the hilt of the kunai tightened, so much that my knuckles ached as they lost their color. And if it weren't for my fingerless gloves my nails would have dug into the palm of my hand.

"Sasuke, calm down! I will protect the four of you with my life," Sensei promised us. "I will not allow my comrades to die, trust me!"

At his words my fear lowered some, but my adrenaline still ran high. For a moment I let out a breath to try to get a hold of myself, a false sense of security washing over me.

"I wouldn't be so sure!" Zabuza disagreed, appearing in the middle of our formation. "This is the end."

Then everything happened so fast. One minute I'm thinking that I'm about to die and the next I'm pushed to the ground. Looking up I saw that Kakashi had stabbed a kunai into Zabuza's stomach, but instead of leaking blood–he was leaking water. _'What the hell!?'_

Then Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi-sensei and readied his sword to strike. My voice was stuck in my throat as Naruto shouted, "Sensei! Behind you!"

The other Zabuza turned to water while the other brought his sword around, slicing our sensei in two. But then the body turned to water, shocking Zabuza. A second later Kakashi appeared behind him, unharmed and unfazed.

"Don't move," He ordered, placing a kunai at Zabuza's neck. "Now, it's over."

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**_A/N:__ Yay another chapter! Anyways, I start school tomorrow so if the updates are slow (which they shouldn't) then I'm sorry! My plan for now is to upload 1-2 chapters a week until school gets really busy. I hope you enjoyed reading and feel free to leave a review telling me what you think (good or bad) or message me if you have any questions or thoughts! I always look forward to hearing from my readers and it tickles me to read your responses. Thank you for reading and have a lovely day! :)_**

**_~Haru Eclipse  
_**


	8. Chapter 7 Ye of Little Faith!

******Warning:** In this chapter Hanako's language is a little rougher, but not too bad.

**Disclaimer:** The only things that I own in this story are my original characters and events.

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**Chapter 7**_ Ye of Little Faith!_

_It's funny how some things work out in life. In the beginning we were one of the most dysfunctional teams to graduate that year, when our lives weren't in danger. But when the fear of death or failure was on the top of our minds we work as one, and hardly ever fought each other. Maybe it was our instincts that told us to put our differences aside and deal with the present danger. Or maybe it was our pride that kept us from getting along from the start._

Just moments ago we were shoved to the ground and away from Zabuza. Kakashi-sensei had pushed us out of the way to stab the rouge ninja, but instead Zabuza turned into water, and the real man appeared behind our sensei and attacked him. For a moment I thought that we had lost our sensei, yet again, but I was proven wrong when his severed parts turned to water.

_'He copied Zabuza's water clone technique!'_ I gasped as my eyes widened. I could practically see the same thought running through Zabuza's mind as surprise crossed his features. Then Kakashi-sensei, whole and unfazed, came behind him and placed a kunai knife at the rouge ninja's neck. "Don't move. Now it's over!"

The mist around us was still pretty thick except for where the two elite ninja stood. In a way the mist acted like walls, creating a special arena for us to fight in. I laid there on my knees, with the bridge builder on his butt next to me, watching the two ninja as they stood very still. The tension coming of them mixed with the mist. And it was quiet ̶ too quiet.

"You're finished!" Kakashi said, getting an excited response from Naruto and Sakura. I frowned at his words, and kept my mouth shut. _Is it really over? I mean I don't doubt sensei's abilities, but this just seems to ease. Right?_

I tried to shake off the feeling in my gut, mentally smacking myself for doubting my teacher. But it was hard to get ride of the growing feeling, and Zabuza's laughter made it even harder. Why was he laughing?

"Finished?" He asked, his voice a mixture of mockery and laughter. "You really don't get it do you? You're technique is nothing but a craft's imitation. I'll never be defeated by a mere copy cat ninja like you!"

Kakashi growled at the statement and Zabuza just laughed before he complimented him. "You are full of surprises though. You already copied my _water clone jutsu_ when you made your little speech!"

I remembered what our sensei told us, how he promised to protect us and wouldn't let us die. And I remembered the sense of relief that I felt when he said those things. But Zabuza's low voice broke through the memory as he continued. "Very skillfully executed, you made your clone say those words to grew my attention, while you hid in the mist, waiting for me to make my move."

Then Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi-sensei while the one we thought was real collapsed into water. "But I'm not that easy to fool!"

"Hey, that was a clone too!" Naruto shouted everyone's thought as we watched the rogue ninja swing his massive sword at our sensei. At the right moment he ducked and the sword flew over top of him, and slammed into the ground. But Zabuza changed the position of his hand on the hilt of the sword and swung around, kicking Kakashi-sensei into the air. Grabbing his sword from the ground he charged toward the direction that Kakashi went, but stopped short. Looking around he tried to find him, just like we were. Then he back-flipped into the body of water behind him.

"Sensei!" Naruto yelled out. I held my breath as my mind began to race again. _'Holy crap! How could he just kick him like that?!'_

Suddenly Kakashi-sensei emerged from the water, but he looked slightly confused as he stared at the water in his hand. Before any of us could do anything, Zabuza ran up behind him ̶ standing effortlessly _on top of the water __̶_and began to do a series of hand-signs. And for the first time we saw a look of panic cross our sensei's face as Zabuza shouted with triumph. "Fool! _Water prison jutsu_!"

"No!" Kakashi yelled before he was encased in a water sphere. If things were different, I'd say that that technique was pretty cool and kind of pretty. But the situation was serious, and the technique was done by a pale rogue ninja _that wanted to kill us_ and the one trapped inside was our sensei.

"This prison is made of water, but it's hard as steel. It's kind of hard to fight when you can't move!" Zabuza explained with one hand in the spherical prison. I tried not to think about how Kakashi-sensei wasn't drowning and instead tried to grasp the situation. "So much for the Great Kakashi, but I'll finish you off later. First you're students would have to be eliminated!"

We quickly got over our shock and got onto our feet as Zabuza called up another water clone. I could feel the adrenaline pumping through me as fear made my limps quiver slightly. I tried to control my breathing as another clone came out of the water. To my left I could hear Naruto's frightened gasp and I could see his outline shake ever so slightly too.

Zabuza chuckled as he began to mock us. "You think wearing a headband makes you a shinobi. When you've hovered between life and death so many times that it doesn't faze you, then you may be called a shinobi. When you've become so powerful that your name is entered into my Bingo book, then you may have earned the title of shinobi," His clone formed a single hand-sign and disappeared into more thick mist, but his disembodied voice continued. "But to call beginners like you shinobi is a joke!"

Biting my lip, I strained my eyes vainly trying to see were he went. But my eyes couldn't find him, not even a single outline. I focused on my breathing as my thoughts went wild. An inner, cowardly voice was screaming, _'Ah shit, we're screwed!_'

Then Naruto was kicked back, his headband flying into the air. He slid on his butt as the metal of the headband clinked asked the ground. Zabuza's clone smashed its foot on the headgear as venom dripped from his words. "You're just brats!"

"Naruto!" Pinky and I shouted together as even Sasuke showed a bit of concern, or maybe it was just shock.

From inside his watery prison, obviously not drowning, Kakashi-sensei desperately tried to order us away. "Listen, get the bridge builder and get out of here; you cant' win this fight! He's using all of his power to keep me here so he can only fight you with his water clone, but his clone can't go far from his body so if you get away from him then he can't follow! Now run!"

Now any sane person wouldn't have waited for Kakashi to tell them to get the hell out of dodge, because they would have been miles away already without thinking anything about him and all about the deep crap they were in. But the four of us aren't exactly the sanest of people. I mean what sane person, or for that matter a child, would choose being a ninja as a lifetime occupation where retirement usually happened when you die ̶ only the lucky ones get a happy retirement. So it didn't take much thought to keep me from running. I mean, sure I was scared and my inner cowardly voice was calling me an idiot for staying. But Kakashi was my sensei and after the speech he made earlier about protecting us I was sure as hell not to leave him behind, especially with a pale psychotic killer!

Shoving my fear and the cowardly voice away to the back of my mind I looked around at my teammates. Naruto still sat on the ground, his entire body was shaking like a leaf as he stared in utter fear and terror at the clone that kicked him. Sakura stood off to my right, her wide green eyes trained on the clone, but her body trembled. Then my eyes fell on Sasuke and for a moment our eyes met. I could already see him calculating something in his mind, and I could see that he was determined to stay and save Kakashi-sensei as well. He looked a lot calmer now than before, but maybe that was because he could see the enemy.

My eyes quickly darted to the water clone, who stood completely still, waiting for us to make the first move. The gears began to turn in my head as I remembered all of the lessons on clone jutsus. _'No matter what kind of clone it is, it has 10% of the original person's power. How hard could this be?'_

I looked back at Sasuke and nodded. With that he charged forward and I grabbed a kunai in each hand, ready to back him up. As he got closer he threw a few small shuriken, trying to distract the clone. While it was blocking the projectiles, Sasuke jumped into the air. "Now!"

Hearing the signal I charged forward, my blue eyes trained on the clone. I could feel my short hair whipping behind me as I ran at it. At that moment I sealed every emotion away, and focused on what would happen next.

Without much effort the clone grabbed Sasuke by the neck and flung him to the side. Sasuke slide across the dirt, but I didn't go after him. Instead I kept charging. When I was close enough I flung both of the knives, aiming for its upper body. But it easily deflected them with its massive sword. With a smirk it swung its sword at me, aiming to kill. Without hesitation I dropped low and readied another kunai. As it grazed my head I could hear the sword slicing through the air. When it passed I shot up, ready to get rid of the clone. But without so much as a blink it kicked me hard in the chest.

Pain exploded in my chest as I was sent flying through the air. Spots ran across my vision as I landed on the hard dirt and continued to slide. The back of my shirt lifted up slightly and what ever rocks that were in the dirt scratched at the exposed skin. Finally I stopped at the base of a tree and my head ran into a large unearthed root. A groan escaped my lips when I was finally able to breath. I lazily dragged my hand across my face, wiping away the blood. _'10% my butt!_'

Biting my lip I tried to forget the burning pain in my chest. I had to get back to the fight. Lifting my legs in the air I rocked back. When my legs were parallel to the ground my feet touched the rough tree trunk. Taking a deep breath I pushed hard against the tree and used the momentum to get back on my feet. As I did I watched Naruto charge at Zabuza's clone and heard Sakura calling his name. _'Damn it Naruto, what the hell are you doing?!'_

I raced back to the others just as Naruto was pushed back. He skid across the ground, his face down and something in his hand. When I came up to them I heard Sakura start giving him lecture, though it sounded more concerned then anything else. "Naruto what were you thinking, charging at him all by yourself? Not even Sasuke or Hanako could get to him! We're only Genin, we can't defeat a Jounin. What did you think you could accomplish by doing that?"

But she stopped her lecture and watched as he struggled to stand. He seemed to be in a lot of pain and his body shook, but not from fear. In his injured hand was his headband, and it suddenly made sense. _'He really wanted it back.'_ I thought as he got all the way up. With a shadow cast over his eyes he spoke in a low tone. "Hey you, the freak with no eyebrows!"

_ 'What now?'_ I thought as I looked at my blonde teammate with concern. "Put this in your Bingo book: The ninja who will become the Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves,"

Then his body stopped shaking and he tied his headband around his forehead as he continued. "His name's Naruto Uzumaki!"

I grinned despite the pain as I saw the determination in his eyes. _'Looks like this dog is ready to start biting._'

"Hey Sasuke, Hanako, listen up can you hear me?" he asked, his eyes locked on the clone.

Sasuke smirked. "Yeah, I hear you."

"Same here."

"I've got a plan." he said confidently and my grin grew wider.

"Oh, so now you're finally thinking about teamwork?" Uchiha mocked/asked but it sounded like he was interested in what our little friend was thinking. Then Naruto turned to us and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and said. "Alright guys, let's go wild!"

Naruto stood in front with Sasuke and I on either side of him. In the back Sakura was ready and guarding the bridge builder. We were all ready and determined to win. And I knew in my gut that we were going to. Even as the pain in my chest continued to burn, I knew that things would go in our favor. Looking as determined as any of us, Naruto asked. "Okay ready? Let's bring this guy down!"

Zabuza's clone laughed. "Such big words for such a little boy. Do you think your plan will keep you in the game?"

"What are you doing? I told you to run! This fight was over the moment I got caught; now take off!" Kakashi-sensei yelled from inside his spherical water prison, his voice sounded distorted. "Your mission is not to prove who brave you are, it's to save the bridge builder. Stay on mission!"

_'Damn, I know he's trying to protect us right now, but man! Ye of little faith much! I don't like it when he underestimates us!'_ My eye twitched slightly, and I knew where he was coming from. My dad would say the same thing, I think any sensei would. But like I said earlier, we are not the sanest kids around.

Naruto turned to the old man. "Bridge builder?"

"Well I guess this all happened because of me ̶ because of my desire to live. But I will not let that stand in your way now!" He said as we watched him, waiting for what he would say. He raised his head and had a large grin as he finished. "Don't worry about me, do what have to do. Go a head and save your sensei!"

"Looks like we have our go!" I said with a smile.

"Alright, you hear that?" Uchiha smirked.

"Yeah, believe it! You ready?" Naruto asked.

It seemed like our enthusiasm made the rogue ninja laugh. The clone seemed to be over come with laughter, though not the good kind, it was the kind of laughter that could be heard in any insane asylum. His shoulders shook as he continued his deep laughter. "You really haven't learned anything have you? Still playing your game, pretending to be ninja. By the time I was your age this hand had crushed many opponents!"

My eyes widened as my gasp mixed in with everyone else. Though Kakashi-sensei seemed unfazed by what he said. "Zabuza the Demon."

"Ah, so I was in your Bingo book too?" The real Zabuza said with amusement. Then the two began to explain the graduation exam in the Village Hidden in the Mist. They had to kill their own classmates to become ninja. But then it changed after the year that a kid just showed up and wiped out most of the class, the boy wasn't even a ninja then. Zabuza was quiet until a deranged look passed over his face as he relished in the memory. "It ̶ it felt so good!"

His clone didn't give us much time for the shock to sink in before he charged after Sasuke. It kneed him in the gut and sent him flying back. When he landed the clone came up and elbowed him in the gut, make him cough up blood. Sakura called out for him, but we were too stunned to do anything. The clone reached for its sword as he slammed his foot down on Sasuke's chest. He looked like he was in a lot of pain as he grunted and held back a scream. The clone laughed at his pain. "You're nothing!"

_'I got to help him!'_ I thought as I grabbed a kunai knife and got ready to charge. But Naruto held out his arm, and I got the silent message that he had it covered. Biting my lip I nodded, remembering the last time I charged at the clone. At the memory the pain in my chest flared. Wincing, I got into a defensive position, ready to back the blonde up.

"Stop right there!" Naruto shouted as he formed a hand-sign. "_Shadow clone jutsu_!"

A few moments later a few dozen Narutos appeared around Zabuza's clone. They pulled out their kunai as Sasuke got out from the clone's foot. Ready to go they all said in unison. "Alright let's go!"

They sprung forward and covered the water clone. From where I stood it looked like a giant orange dog pile. But they didn't hold it down for long. Not a minute later the clone threw them off of it and sent them flying in the air. As they landed they turned into little puffs of smoke.

"His skills are to advanced," The bridge builder said over the shocked gasp Sakura made. "There's no way to defeat him!"

"I'm not giving up yet! I still got this." Naruto yelled with determination as he rummage threw his bag. Then he grabbed something and threw it toward Sasuke. "Sasuke!"

The boy reached forward and grabbed it. Spinning around he righted himself and faced the clone. The blade in Sasuke's hand unfolded to reveal a giant four-point shuriken. "Demon Wind Shuriken: _Windmill of_ _ Shadows!_"

I whistled as I watched. And I'd never admit it, but Uchiha looked pretty cool holding that large shuriken in his hand. The clone laughed and said mockingly, "A shuriken? You can never defeat me with that!"

Ignoring the comment Sasuke leaped into the air and hurled the shuriken at the clone. It spun toward the clone but went around it going towards its real target standing on top of the water. Zabuza was slightly impressed but he caught the weapon with ease, his other hand still in the prison. But then a second shuriken appeared out of the shadow of the first and came spinning at him. I watched in amazement, _'It can't miss! I knew we were going to win!'_

But no sooner had I thought that Zabuza jumped several feet into the air, and dodged the shuriken completely. "I told you a shuriken can't touch me!"

"What the hell!" I yelled in frustration, not believing what I saw. Looking over at Sasuke I noticed that he wasn't worried, in fact he smirked. _'What's going on?'_

The shuriken zoomed across the water and when it was a few feet away from Zabuza it changed. Shocked I watched as the shuriken turned into Naruto with a kunai in his hand. And it seemed like I wasn't the only one who didn't see it coming.

"What?!" Zabuza yelled, just as shocked as everyone else.

Then Naruto threw the kunai at Zabuza as he fell into the water. "Eat this!"

* * *

_**A/N:** Wooh another chapter! Anyways thanks for reading and I hoped that you enjoyed it! Please let me know what you think, good or bad, I love to hear what runs through my readers heads! If you have any suggestions or complaints let me know and I'll see what I can do. For now I'll still try to update once a week (or something close to that). I think there's only going to be a few more chapters before we move on to the Chunin Exams! Again thanks for reading and have a nice day! _  
_:)_

_**~Haru Eclipse**  
_


	9. Chapter 8 the Tracker

Chapter 8 _The Tracker_

_** There are times when our lives just seem so unfair. Like all our hard work mean nothing in the end. Even being ninja doesn't seem to make a difference. When this happens it is better to save our angry and energy for the next fight.**_

"Eat this!" Naruto shouted and flung the kunai.

The kunai cut throw the air and went toward Zabuza. From where we stood it looked like it was going to hit the man in the face. But right at the last second Zabuza stepped sideways and the kunai flew right by him, just inches from his face. His hand at that moment came out of the watery prison and released our sensei. Infuriated Zabuza turned to our blonde companion, as he began to fall into the water, with a look that could kill an entire army. As he turned he began to spin the large shuriken that he caught just a few moments ago. Then he started toward Naruto with the weapon spinning at full speed, ready to release it. "YOU'RE DEAD!"

But before he could Zabuza was stopped and Naruto crashed into the water. Standing beside the rogue ninja was our sensei, completely soaked and seething, with one of the blades in his fist. I let out a sigh as Pinky shouted with utter joy, "Kakashi-sensei!"

As Naruto reemerged from the water he was complimented by Kakashi-sensei. "Naruto, that was an excellent plan! You've really grown haven't you?"

Naruto laughed as he explained his plan. "I know I couldn't beat him with my shadow-clones ̶ that was just to distract him! While he fought the clones I turned into the _Demon Wind Shuriken. _He didn't know what to do! Believe it!"

_'I have to admit, his plan was pretty ingenious. I don't think any of us could have come up with a better plan!' _I thought as he finished his long, in-depth explanation to what happened. He seemed pretty proud of himself, and he should have been.

"Don't brag, you just lucked out." Sasuke said dismissively, which made me roll my eyes. I could see that inside, Uchiha thought differently. _'Why can't they work like that all the time? When they're not fighting they actually make a pretty good team! Ugh!'_

"The whole thing was just a fluke!" Tazuna shouted angrily. I glared at the old man as Sakura stayed silent, obviously thinking of something.

On the water the two high-ranking ninja stood completely still. The shuriken was still in Kakashi's fist and the water rippled from their feet. Zabuza tried to defend himself saying, "I got distracted and lost my grip on the water prison."

"Don't flatter yourself," Kakashi-sensei said. "You weren't distracted, you were forced to let go!"

Sensei's comment seemed to hit a nerve as the tension in the air began to increase again. Sasuke seemed to sense the rising tension and got ready and I followed suit. Zabuza stayed silent as Kakashi continued. "Your technique worked on me once, but it won't work again! So what's it going to be?"

"Sakura, Hanako, you know what to do." Uchiha said to us and we nodded. Without a word Pinky and I moved in front of the bridge while Uchiha stood in front of us. As we watched the two ninja on the water a tingling feeling rose on the back of my neck. The tension in the air was so thick that not even a knife could slice it. Biting my lower lip the little voice inside my head told me that something was coming.

Suddenly Zabuza closed the shuriken and forced all four blades on Kakashi's fist. For a few moments they struggled until sensei got the weapon out of the rogue's hand and sent it flying into the air. The shuriken disappeared and they jumped back from each other, leaving several feet between them. While they were in the air Zabuza put his hands together and made a hand-sign. Then when they landed things just got weird.

From where we stood we watched in total awe as the two shinobi made their hands move in a long sequence of continuous hand-signs. Kakashi-sensei mirrored Zabuza's every move perfectly and simultaneously. My eyes widened slightly and my mouth hung up a little. _'This is so freaky!'_

As they neared the end of the long sequence the water between them began to move. It looked unnatural and strange, as if it was trying to take a solid shape. Then they got to the last hand-sign and the water got its wish.

"Water style_: Water Dragon jutsu._" They said synchronously. The water took the form of two large serpent dragons that twisted together as they rose in the air. Then they attacked each other, crashing together sending water to crash down on us. I swore loudly as we braced ourselves against the large waves. The dragons perdured, spraying more water on us.

I growled in frustration as more and more water rained down on us. Goosebumps ran over my arms and legs as a cool breeze swept through. _'God, this water's cold!'_

Underneath the fighting dragons were Kakashi and Zabuza locked in a struggle, with Zabuza's massive sword pushing again Kakashi's kunai. Then they broke apart once more and circled each other. When they stopped Kakashi-sensei mirrored Zabuza's movements exactly, raising one arm in the air and one to his face. _'What the hell is going on? It's like he's reading Zabuza's mind!'_

"He's not just copying him, he's moving the same way at the same time!" The bridge builder pointed out from the ground.

"How's he doing that Sasuke?" Pinky asked as she helped Tazuna sit up. But Sasuke stayed silent and watched. On the water they continued to move as one. When Kakashi began mimicking what Zabuza said the rogue ninja panicked.

"When I'm finished with you you'll never open that monkey mouth again!" Zabuza sneered as he began to move his hands again. Just like before Kakashi-sensei mirrored them perfectly but something else was happening too. Suddenly Zabuza stopped and just stared at our sensei, but it was like he was seeing a ghost because his eyes were wide ̶ and even fearful. But Kakashi didn't stop and he finished the sequence. "Water style: _Giant Vortex jutsu_!"

Then the water in front of Kakashi began to swirl. It formed a circle just above the water and spun faster and faster until it surged toward the rogue and crashed into him, sending him backwards. The excess water pushed against us, getting us even more wet as poor Naruto struggled to stay above the waves. Finally the water pushed Zabuza up against a tree where Kakashi used four kunai to keep him there. As the water receded we rushed over to where they were.

"This is your last battle!" Kakashi-sensei said as we got near, but before he could finish the rogue a couple of long thick needle beat him to it. We watched in total shock as the needles pierced his neck and fell to the ground dead. His body was stiff and his wide eyes were lifeless.

"Damn." I muttered to myself as I looked away from the body and in the direction of where the needles came from.

"You're right, this was his last battle." a boy said from up in a tree not to far away. Kakashi-sensei jumped from his tree and put his fingers to Zabuza's neck. After a few moments he confirmed. "No vital signs."

The new arrival then bowed to us and thank us. "I've been tracking Zabuza for a long time, waiting for this chance to finally take him down."

"By your mask I see that you're a tracker ninja from the Village Hidden in the Mist." Kakashi said matter-of-factually.

"Impressive, you're well informed." The tracker said. When Naruto appeared, ready to attack the new comer, Sakura stopped him and explained what a tracker ninja was and what their role was to their village. The tracker then added more, telling us that he was part of an elite tracking unit and that it was his duty to bring Zabuza down.

A breeze blew through the air making me shiver as I stared at the boy in the tree. He didn't seem to be any taller than the rest of us and his mostly white mask hid his face well. But by the sound of his voice, he didn't sound that much older than we were. I chewed on my lower lip as another shiver ran down my spine. _'If he's an elite ninja assassin at our age that means he's really strong !'_

Then Naruto rushed forward and stopped just a few feet away from the tree the boy was in. He growled as he looked from the body to the tracker. After a few moments he began to shout and point at the ninja. "What is this? Who do you think you are!"

We gasped at his words, but I could sympathize with his anger, because my own was starting to boil under my skin. He breathed heavily as he continued. "Did you hear me?"

"Easy Naruto, he's not our enemy." Kakashi-sensei ordered as he stood up. But Naruto refused. "That's not the point! Did you see what he did? Just like that! Zabuza was huge and powerful ̶ like some kind of monster."

He continued to rant as Kakashi-sensei walked toward him slowly. "And this kid, who's no bigger than me took him down in one move, like he was nothing! I mean what does that make us? We're just fumbling around, we don't know anything! How can I accept that!?"

"Even if you can't accept that, it's what happened." Kakashi-sensei empathized, placing his hand on Naruto's blond head. "In this world there are kids who are younger than you but stronger than me."

Then the tracker ninja appeared beside Zabuza's body in a swirl of wind and leaves, and picked it up. It seemed like it was no trouble to him to pick up the heavy corpse as he told us. "You're struggle is over for now, but I must deal with the remains. There are many secrets in this body and I must get rid of them before they fall into the wrong hands. Please excuse me, goodbye."

Then he disappeared in a swirl of wind and leaves, leaving us alone in the muddy clearing. I tightened my fists and bit my lip as Naruto's words sunk in. In some ways he was right, it didn't seem fair and it was like our actions were pointless. My right hand gripped the middle of my shirt, right where Zabuza's clone kicked me and damaged some of my ribs. My anger burned with the lingering pain that wouldn't fade as I remembered the pain we all went through just so that someone else could finish what we started. _'This is so messed up!'_

When the tracker left Naruto ran to the tree that where the boy stood and watched us, and where he killed the rogue in a single shot. I could see the fury rolling off him in waves as he knelt to the ground and began to punch the muddied dirt. He yelled in frustration and Sakura spoke his name with sympathy and concern. The rest of us were silent, but we all felt the same frustration in some way, but he was the only one to act on it. As he continued to beat the ground Kakashi-sensei walked over to him and grabbed his arm with the injured hand.

"As shinobi, the things we face are never easy. Save your energy for the next enemy." He consoled before he let go of Naruto's arm. Naruto's body relaxed in defeat, his frustration all but fizzed out. Then turning to us Kakashi continued, "We're not done yet, we still have to get the bridge builder to his bridge!"

The said man just laughed and offered his home to us once we returned him to his village. The gesture was nice, and it seemed to lighten to situation just a tiny bit. Satisfied, Kakashi-sensei ordered us to continue going and we started out journey again. But as soon as we started walking our sensei stopped and collapsed. _'Now what!?'_

"What happened?" Pinky demanded as we all ran toward him. We circled his body and looked hard to find what caused him to fall. Naruto called out to him but there was no reply. Curious, I walked around to where Naruto stood and bent down. From my angle I could see his chest move slightly up and down. Then I stretched my hand to his face and got a finger near his nose. Light warm air came out of his nose and touched my cold finger. _'Yep, he's still alive.'_

"I think he just fainted." I stated, still squatting near his head and looking up at the concerned faces.

"Are you sure?" Tazuna asked.

I rolled my eyes. "Well he's still breathing, so he ain't dead yet."

"Using the Sharingan for that long must have drained most his energy." Uchiha observed, his face blank and his hands in his pockets.

"What are we going to do now?" Pinky asked with concern and fear in her voice. "We can't just wait here until he wakes up, that's too dangerous! What if someone else tries to come after us?"

I sighed as I tried to stand up, trying to be careful of my bruised ribs, but I still ended up moving the wrong way and making the pain flare. The pain faded somewhat and I answered her with a shrug. "I guess we'll have to carry him."

"Carry him all the way to the village?" Sakura seemed skeptical of my plan. "Do you know how heavy he is?"

"He probably weighs about the average male adult." I answered. "So that means it'll probably take two of us to carry him."

"But we still have a ways to go before we reach my village." Tazuna said as he tipped his straw hat. "There's no way you could carry him all the way there."

"It'll be slow, but we have to keep moving and we can't leave him here."

"Yea, and we can take turns carrying him." Naruto added.

"This seems to be our only option." Sasuke agreed.

"So it's settled," I said a little triumphantly. "We'll take turns carrying sensei to the village or until he wakes up!"

"So who'll carry him first?" Pinky asked. Everyone grew quiet for a moment while we thought about her question. We were all pretty beat up, which meant that this was not going to be easy.

"Hanako and I will carry him first." Uchiha said, breaking the silence. He looked at me with a smirk and seemed to ask me a silent question: Are you up for it?

"Sure, that means Naruto and Sakura will carry him after us." I nodded, not wanting to back down. Sakura seemed disappointed that he didn't want her help, but she didn't argue for once. We knelt down and grabbed a hold of one of his arms to put around our necks. Then we wrapped our other arm around his back to keep him from fall over.

"Are you ready?" He asked me and I nodded. Wincing we both stood up and lifted our sensei off the ground – mostly. My legs burned from the extra weight and the pain in my chest flared. After we did a little rearranging and got as comfortable as we could, we began to walk forward with the others trailing behind us. It didn't take long for me to start panting and my body to start protesting about the extra weight, and I knew that Sasuke wasn't doing any better. _'This is so not my day!'_

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_**A/N:**** Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! And sorry it took me a while to update on this chapter, but such is life. Anyways, let me know what you think. I always love to hear your thoughts and criticisms! I'll try to update again in the next week or two and try to finish this arc up soon! :)**  
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_****~Haru Eclipse  
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